Springfield, Mass. - September 24, 2022 - The Springfield College football team concluded non-conference play with a 49-7 victory over Husson on Saturday afternoon on Stagg Field.
The win boosted the Pride's record to 2-2, while the Eagles fell to 1-3.
Springfield produced 540 yards of offense, including 429 on the ground, as it churned up 27 first downs and averaged over nine yards per offensive play. The fullback trio of Nicholas Raneri (North Attleboro, Mass.), Arsen Shtefan (West Hartford, Conn.), and Joseph Cannizzaro (Lincoln Park, N.J. ) combined for 260 yards and four scores, with Shtefan totaling 83 yards and three scores on just six carries. David Wells (Huntington, Conn.) completed a pair of passes for 111 yards and a score. Defensively, Springfield was outstanding and held Husson to just 2-of-13 on third down as the Eagles had just 147 yards of offense in the game. Springfield totaled six sacks in the game and DJ Brown (Wading River, N.Y.) finshed the game with four tackles, three of which were for loss, to go along with a forced fumble.
It was a dominating first 30 minutes of play for Springfield, as it jumped out to a 28-0 advantage and outgained the visitors by a 274-50 margin. On the opening drive, the Pride marched 75 yards in nine plays, with Shtefan finding room up the middle for a 19 yard scamper for the game's first score at 10:29. After forcing the Eagles to punt on their first possession, the Pride leaned on its fullback group to march down the field before Blane Hart (East Lyme, Conn.) found the end for an 11-yard touchdown run with 3:45 on the clock. Springfield then got the ball back in great position, as Brown forced a fumble on the Husson 21-yard line that Joe Klick (Jewett City, Conn.) recovered. Three Shtefan runs later, the Pride increased its lead to 21-0 as the fullback lumbered in from five yards out with 1:19 left to play in the first.
The Pride would tack on its fourth score of the game midway through the second quarter. A Raneri 44-yard run would set up the Pride on the Husson 26-yard line before Shtefan would slice through the line for his third score of the game on the next play to make it a 28-0 game with 8:40 left in the frame. Springfield's defense would keep the visitors off the scoreboard as it turned the Eagles over on downs as Brown made an incredible play in the backfield to thwart the fourth and one on the Springfield 11 yard line with just over a minute left in the first half.
After Husson went three and out to start the second half, Springfield used a 60-yard catch and run by Jared Durocher (Agawam, Mass.) to fuel its next touchdown drive as Jacob Silvester (Lancaster, Mass.) found the end zone from 13 yards just over two minutes into the third. Husson would punt again and the Pride wasted no time striking again, as Noah Wagnblas (Ansonia, Conn.) made a sensational catch and raced past the Eagles defense for a 51 yard touchdown at the 9:08 mark. Another Husson punt would lead to the Pride's final touchdown of the game as Cannizzaro punched it in from five yards out with 4:37 to make it 49-0.
The visitors only score of the game came on a 17-play drive that lasted over nine minutes and covered 80 yards and Elijah Garnett scored on a two yard touchdown with 5:40 remaining in regulation.
The Pride will be on a bye next week before returning to competition on October 8 at Coast Guard to begin New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play.
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