TROY, N.Y. – The SUNY Morrisville football team made a program fourth appearance in the postseason Saturday as they traveled to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) for a noon kick-off in the ECAC Division III Scotty Whitelaw Bowl, suffering a heartbreaking 10-6 loss in Troy.

THE BASICS:

• Final Score: Morrisville 6, RPI 10 (halftime: tied at 3)
• Location: East Campus Stadium, Troy, N.Y.
• Records: Morrisville 7-4, RPI 8-3

 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• The SUNY Morrisville football program made a program fourth appearance in the post-season Saturday, meeting for the first time RPI in the ECAC Division III Scotty Whitelaw Bowl Championship in Troy, suffering a heartbreaking 10-6 loss.
• A tough defensive battle between two stout teams, Morrisville maintained the 6-3 lead until the final minute of the contest when RPI posted the game's lone touchdown score to claim the Bowl win.
• Morrisville took a 3-0 lead early in the second with a 46-yard field goal off the foot of Owen Cole (Maspeth, N.Y.), a career high for the sophomore who kicked his 11^th total on the year.
• Cole's field goal was also a single game record for the Mustangs, breaking the 20-year-old record held by Aaron Kopp (Sept. 28, 2002).
• With time winding down towards the halftime period, RPI was able to pull the contest even at three with a 29-yard field goal to compete an eight play, 60-yard drive and second the contest into the break knotted at three.
• Cole regained the lead for Morrisville, who took advantage of the hosts turnover on downs, kicking the 30-yard field goal for the 6-3 lead at the 4:19 mark of the third.
• Morrisville forced the hosts to punt the ball away early in the fourth frame before putting together a drive that ate six minutes off the clock, but a goal line stance by the Engineers turned the ball back over to the hosts on downs.
• RPI attempted to move the ball on the ensuing drive, but as with the rest of the contest, and season for that matter, Morrisville's defense forced the offense to punt the ball away.
• The Mustangs, however, would get great field position after Omar Jarvis (Rochester, N.Y.) got a hand on the ball to send it out of bounds at the RPI 36 yard line.
• RPI forced Morrisville to give the ball up after four downs, on a broken up pass, and gave their offensive unit one final possession.
• Facing fourth and six, RPI was able to hit lead receiver Peter Lombardi for a 22-yard gain and first down, keeping the drive alive, and three downs later hit Lombardi again on fourth down for a 28-yard strike into the Mustangs red zone.
• Morrisville attempted to hold the Engineers out of the end zone, but a rush up middle made it a 10-6 ball game in favor of the hosts with 40 seconds remaining on the clock.
• Morrisville marched downfield with 18- and 13-yard gains by Aiden McDonald (Rochester, N.Y.) and a nine-yard gain by Jarrell Chaney (Albany, N.Y.), but a final second hail Mary attempt to the end zone by Steven Frerichs (Wilson, N.Y.) landed in the arms of RPI, sealing the win.
• Frerichs finished the contest with 145 yards going 17-for-30 on the day, adding 11 yards net rushing.
• Emmett Wood (Barton, N.Y.) led Morrisville on the ground with 51 net yards, while McDonald led the receiving unit with 50 yards on three receptions.
• Evan Salvaggio (Geneseo, N.Y.) had a career high of a day for Morrisville, collecting 18 total stops, nine solo, while recording a pass break up.
• Philemon Benjamin, Jr. (Queens, N.Y.) had nine to wrap up his collegiate career, also recording a forced fumble.

 
WHAT'S NEXT:
 

• Morrisville completes the season 7-4 overall.

 
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