Bresson led the defense with a season-high 11 tackles. (PHOTO BY Andrew Katsampes) |
Pioneers record 606 yards of total offense, led by 406 passing for Gavalas with four TDs
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (September 16, 2017) – LIU Post, ranked No. 9 in this week's American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II poll and 13th in the D2Football.com poll, totaled 606 yards of total offense in posting a 51-16 victory over Stonehill College in Northeast-10 Conference football action at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium today.
Postgrad quarterback Yianni Gavalas (Manhasset, New York/Holy Cross) passed for 406 yards, completing 35-of-43 attempts with four touchdowns to lead the LIU Post offense. Senior Michael Richardson (West Babylon, New York/West Babylon) caught eight passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns, while junior Amir Crenshaw (Bronx, New York/Cardinal Hayes) collected a pair of touchdown passes, and junior Malik Pierre (Holbrook, New York/Sachem) rushed for two, finishing with 38 yards on ten carries.
Junior Jake Carlock (Babylon, New York/Babylon) led the LIU Post defense with six tackles, five solo, including 1.0 for a loss of four yards, with an interception and pass breakup. Senior Jared Chester (Mount Vernon, New York/Mount St. Michael Academy) added six stops, two solo, with a breakup and blocked kick, while senior Jess Agbotse (Hackensack, New Jersey/Hackensack) and freshman Joe Amalfitano (Franklin Square, New York/Carey) each chipped in with a sack.
Sophomore Brian Kearns, Jr. (North Arlington, New Jersey/Saint Joseph Regional) rushed for both Stonehill touchdowns, finishing with 83 yards on 16 attempts. Classmate Andrew Jamiel (Yarmouth, Massachusetts/Dennis-Yarmouth) added nine receptions for 73 yards, with senior quarterback Matt Foltz (Mount Joy, Pennsylvania/The Hill School) being limited to 18-for-33 passing for 153 yards.
Kearns, Jr. rushed for both Stonehill touchdowns. (PHOTO BY Andrew Katsampes) |
Freshman Nate Bresson (Torrington, Connecticut/Torrington) paced the Stonehill defense with a season-high 11 tackles, with seven solo, including 2.0 tackles for a loss of two yards. Junior Jack Kelly (Trumbull, Connecticut/Trumbull) totaled a career-best ten stops, with five solo, including 0.5 tackles for loss, while sophomore Ryan Shuts (Mount Laurel, New Jersey/Lenape Regional) contributed five tackles, four solo, an interception and forced fumble. Junior Nicolau Coury (Lowell, Massachusetts/Lowell) chipped in with four stops, one solo, including a sack and forced fumble that produced a safety.
LIU Post jumped out to a 13-0 lead halfway through the first quarter with Gavalas throwing touchdown passes of 17 and ten yards to Richardson and Crenshaw, respectively. The scoring pass to Richardson capped the opening drive of the game as the Pioneers went 75 yards in just five plays, while Crenshaw capped an 11-play, 70-yard drive on the hosts second possession.
Stonehill got on the scoreboard with 4:45 remaining in the first as Coury sacked Gavalas for a loss of 17, forcing a fumble, which the Pioneers recovered in the end zone, resulting in a Skyhawks safety. Stonehill closed the gap to five points when Kearns, Jr. reeled off a 49-yard touchdown run from midfield 2:10 into the second quarter after the Skyhawks turned the Pioneers over on downs. Stonehill grabbed the lead after Shuts intercepted Gavalas at the Skyhawks ten, and then Kearns, Jr. capped an 11-play, 76-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown plunge and then Foltz converted a two-point conversion.
Shuts had an interception and forced fumble. (PHOTO BY Andrew Katsampes) |
LIU Post responded from there with 38 unanswered points to claim the victory, including 21-straight to close out the first half. Gavalas hit Crenshaw with a 28-yard touchdown pass with five minutes remaining in the second quarter to put the Pioneers back in front and then Pierre added scoring runs of four and three yards in the final minute, the second coming after Carlock intercepted Foltz at the Stonehill 17 with 33-seconds remaining.
LIU Post sealed the win with 17 second half points, scoring a 31-yard field goal by junior Joey Tolgyesi (Miami, Florida/Christopher Columbus) and then a 22-yard Gavalas touchdown pass to Richardson on its two third quarter possessions. Sophomore Tim Marinan (Longwood, Florida/Lake Brantley) added a three-yard touchdown run five minutes into the fourth to cap the scoring.
Stonehill (1-2, 0-2 NE10) is back in action next Saturday, September 23, when it hosts Saint Anselm College for its Alumni Game when the College will honor its 30th season of varsity football at 6 p.m. All varsity alumni are invited to attend and there will be a brief ceremony on the field at halftime. LIU Post (3-0, 2-0 NE10) visits Bentley University next Saturday at 2 p.m.
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