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Southern Connecticut State University Athletics

Scoreboard

Scoreboard

34
Pace PAC 0-8 , 0-4
35
Winner Southern Conn. St. SCS 2-4 , 2-1
Pace PAC
0-8 , 0-4
34
Final
35
Southern Conn. St. SCS
2-4 , 2-1
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
PAC Pace 21 6 7 0 34
SCS Southern Conn. St. 0 7 14 14 35
Jon Giller

Game Recap: Football |

Falzon, Giller Lead SCSU Football To 35-34 Comeback Win At Pace

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Southern Connecticut football erased a 21-point deficit to shock Pace on the road, 35-34. The Owls played from behind for the first half before dominating play in the second. With the win, the Owls improved to 2-4 overall and 2-1 in the Northeast 10 Conference.

Quarterback John Giller and running back Kieran Falzon punished the Setters defense to the tune of 277 rushing yards and five touchdowns, including four in the final two quarters. Falzon had 23 carries for a career-best 181 yards and two touchdowns on runs of 57 and 53 yards. Giller had three rushing touchdowns and finished with 13 carries for 97 yards, while also passing for 132 yards on a 12-for-22 effort.

On defense, Dom Barbuto had a monster game that saw the Owls' defensive star total a team-high eight tackles and a 33-yard interception that sealed the win for the Owls. LaRawn Robinson and Ivory Parker also had eight tackles, each, while Parker had 3.5 tackles for loss. Jayden Hayes-Robertson blocked his third point-after attempt of the season to hold the Setters with a 27-7 lead in the second quarter, which ultimately stood as the difference in a tie and a win for the Owls.



Southern fell into an early hole as the Setters scored 21 unanswered points in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Southern started with the ball on their own 24 yard before Giller hooked up with Seth Westover and Falzon went for 13 yards and a first down. After Giller's next attempt was broken up, Falzon took the pitch in the flat and looked to be consumed by the entire Setters' defense. The NE10's second-leading rusher powered through the pile and took it 57 yards for the Owls first touchdown of the day and cut Pace's lead to 21-7. Pace responded on the ensuing drive with Hayes-Robertson's blocked PAT foreshadowing the final score

In the second half, Southern stormed down the field, using 13 plays and 64 yards to make it a two-score game. Giller slung a 16-yard pass to Westover and then rushed for 16 yards. Chipping away, Giller then found Kyle Villani cutting across the middle of the field for a 25-yard gain down to Pace's 1 yard line. The Owls' signal caller then followed James Griffith's block into the end zone to make it 27-14 with Daniel Benzi's extra point.

Southern stopped Pace and got the ball back. Giller and Villani opened the drive with a 12-yard reception before Giller picked up 10 on the ground. With the ball on Pace's 34 yard line, Giller found Villani again, this time for a 19-yard gain and the ball on Pace's 8 yard line. The Owls quarterback then saw an opening and ran for his second touchdown of the day to cut Pace's lead to 27-21.

Late in the quarter, Pace's Anthony Robinson accounted for the Setters' only points of the second half with a 77-yard touchdown run that looked to be the response the home team was looking for as they took a 34-21 lead heading to the fourth quarter.

In the fourth, Giller hooked up with Westover for a 10-yard catch before an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty moved Southern another 15 yards to Pace's 43 yard line. A pass to Villani for six and a two-yard run for Falzon preceded the Owls' running back getting stopped on third down. On 4th and 2, Giller once again found the opening in the line and took it 35 yards to pull the Owls within six, 34-28.

After Southern stopped Pace on consecutive drives, Falzon once again blitzed through the Setters' defense to go 53 yards and tie the game with 4:23 to play. Benzi converted to give the Owls a 35-34 lead.
The game, already filled with enough excitement, got more dramatic when the Owls defensive line tipped the Setters' quarterback's pass into the air before it was snatched up by Barbuto, who returned it 33 yards to Pace's 2 yard line. Pace, however, held the Owls and regained possession.

In the closing minutes, Pace drove from their own end zone to midfield before an offensive pass interference penalty handed the home team a 1st-and-25. From there, Southern held Pace at bay in the closing seconds before kneeling out the clock and picking up the victory.

Southern is back in action on Oct. 25 when it hosts Saint Anselm at 1 p.m. at Jess Dow Field.
 
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Scoring Summary

Scoring Summary
Scoring Play Visiting Team Score Home Team Score
1st Quarter PAC SCS
PAC
14:46 - PAC - Temple,Elijah 96 yd kickoff return (Malandruccolo,Marc kick)
7 0
PAC
04:50 - PAC - Lewis,Elizjah 13 yd pass from Davis,Ah-Shaun (Malandruccolo,Marc kick) 6 plays, 58 yards, TOP 03:28
14 0
PAC
00:02 - PAC - Lewis,Elizjah 8 yd pass from Davis,Ah-Shaun (Malandruccolo,Marc kick) 7 plays, 47 yards, TOP 03:15
21 0
2nd Quarter PAC SCS
SCS
13:33 - SCS - Falzon,Kieran 57 yd run (Benzi,Daniel kick), 4 plays, 76 yards, TOP 01:27
21 7
PAC
07:06 - PAC - Tobe,Hayezon 19 yd pass from Davis,Ah-Shaun ( ) 11 plays, 71 yards, TOP 06:19
27 7
3rd Quarter PAC SCS
SCS
09:30 - SCS - Giller,John 1 yd run (Benzi,Daniel kick), 10 plays, 64 yards, TOP 05:24
27 14
SCS
01:07 - SCS - Giller,John 8 yd run (Benzi,Daniel kick), 11 plays, 77 yards, TOP 06:04
27 21
PAC
00:49 - PAC - Robinson,Anthony 77 yd run (Malandruccolo,Marc kick), 1 plays, 77 yards, TOP 00:13
34 21
4th Quarter PAC SCS
SCS
12:23 - SCS - Giller,John 35 yd run (Benzi,Daniel kick), 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:19
34 28
SCS
04:30 - SCS - Falzon,Kieran 53 yd run (Benzi,Daniel kick), 6 plays, 80 yards, TOP 03:18
34 35

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