Box Score

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The Southern Connecticut State University football team held a four-point lead in the fourth quarter, but visiting Bentley scored the final 14 points of the contest to claim a 24-14 win over the Owls on Senior Day.

The Owls are now 2-8 overall and 2-6 in Northeast-10 play. Bentley moved to 7-2, 6-2.

Southern Connecticut will now travel to Stonehill on Nov. 10 for action during the inaugural Northeast-10 Championship weekend.

The Owls trailed 10-7 at halftime, but took the lead with 3:25 remaining in the third quarter. Quarterback Michael Eckrote (Wayne, N.J.) connected with wide receiver Carlton Staggars (West Haven, Conn.) on an 8-yard touchdown reception that gave the hosts their first lead of the game. Devin Silverman (Berlin, Conn.) added the PAT to pad the lead to 14-10.



The score stayed that way until nearly midway through the final quarter. After forcing a Bentley fumble, SCSU faced a 3rd-and-8 from its own 37. However, an errant snap went all the way into the Owls' end zone, where it was recovered by A.C. Carter for a touchdown. Bentley added the PAT to go in front 17-14.

The Owls had the ball two more times in the closing minutes with an opportunity to regain the lead, but were unable to do so. Bentley added a touchdown with 1:13 left to make it a 10-point final.

Bentley scored the first 10 points of the game to build a 10-0 lead only five seconds into the second quarter. The Owls countered with a touchdown before the half to cut the gap to just three points. Vaughn Magee (Mastic Beach, N.Y.) closed a 13-play, 59-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run. Silverman's PAT made it 10-7 at the time.



The Owls' defense forced four Bentley turnovers on the day. Jack Cooper (Kensington, Conn.) had a team-high eight tackles to go along with a forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. Nathan Tyler (West Hartford, Conn.) added seven tackles and a fumble recovery, while A.J. Marsiglia (Berlin, Conn.) had seven tackles and a sack.

Magee rushed 26 times for 83 yards and a touchdown and surpassed the 1,000 yard mark for the season during the contest. Eckrote was 10-for-25 for 111 yards and a touchdown. Jayson Holt (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) had four catches for 49 yards to lead the receivers, while Willie Epps (Norwalk, Conn.) totaled three catches for 34 yards.