SETTERS LAST MINUTE CHANCE FALLS SHORT, STONEHILL WINS 17-13

EASTON, MA – Senior Bobby Guy's (Fair Lawn, NJ) last minute interception set up Pace in Stonehill's red zone trailing 17-13. After two plays, there was a pass to wide receiver senior Keith Locasio (Cedar Grove, NJ) that would have given the Setter's their first lead and a possible win for the game. However, it was broken up by Stonehill's defense.

Sophomore quarterback Greg Borsari (Kingston, MA) threw for 146 yards and a pair of touchdowns as Stonehill held off securing the win in the final minutes of play to post a 17-13 Northeast – 10 Conference victory over the Setters in front of a sellout crowd of 2,400 at the opening match played at W.B. Mason Stadium. Pace falls to 0-2 overall and 0-2 in the NE-10, as Stonehill remains undefeated overall at 2-0 and in conference play.  

The Setter's closed within three at the break at 10-7 when senior quarterback Mike Timmerman (Saddle Brook, NJ) scored from five yards out with 4:58 remaining in the half, but the Skyhawks came out strong in the third quarter and regained the 10-point cushion on the second play of the half when Borsari found senior Mike Plichta (Milford, MA) for a 55 yard touchdown pass and a 17-7 Stonehill lead after three quarters of play.

Pace started the fourth quarter strong with a second five yard touchdown by Timmerman, who has all three of the Setter's touchdowns this season, in the first 26 seconds of play closing Stonehill's lead to just four. However, the extra point attempt hit the upright which proved to be a critical miss later in the game. Stonehill also missed a field goal attempt hitting the upright, and the two teams traded off possessions until the Skyhawks held Pace on downs at their own 23-yard line with just over two minutes remaining. Borsari was intercepted at his own 24 on a 3^rd-and-9 attempt by Setter senior Guy, giving the visitors 1^st-and-goal at the Stonehill 8-yard line, but the Skyhawks again held on downs following a pass break-up by sophomore Dana Burris (Boston, Mass.) in the end zone on third down and a stop Timmerman's last second rushing attempt as time expired.

Borsari completed 11-of-25 passes on the afternoon and added 14 rushing yards to amass 160 of Stonehill's 230 yards of total offense on the day, as senior Ryan Griffith (Hanson, Mass.) rushed for 49 yards on 16 carries as part of his 127 all-purpose yards on the afternoon that included a 66-yard kickoff return.  Plichta hauled in four receptions for 96 yards for the Skyhawks, while freshman Jeff Cuqua (Walpole, Mass.) led the defensive charge for the hosts with 11 total tackles, including six solo stops, as Stonehill is off to a 2-0 start for the second straight season.

Timmerman completed 26-of-35 passes for 196 yards to go with 52 rushing yards as part of his 248 yards of total offense in the setback for Pace, while senior Mitchell Backus (North Babylon, N.Y.) added 64 rushing yards as part of the Setters' 332 yards of total offense for the contest.  Sophomore Joe Toronto (Fair Lawn, N.J.) and senior Dan Khahaifa (Newburgh, N.Y.) combined for 13 receptions for 133 yards for the visitors, who were led defensively by senior Dan Sullivan's (Levittown, N.Y.) eight total tackles.