Salve Regina Tops Fitchburg State, 34-7

Teague clips 100-plateau for second straight contest

FITCHBURG, Mass. (September 15, 2012) – The Fitchburg State football team suffered a tough non-division setback this afternoon, falling to the Seahawks of Salve Regina University, 34-7 in New England Football Conference action at Elliot Field.

The Seahawks received a solid offensive showing from Richie Edwards (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull) who finished the contest with 116 yards rushing, two touchdowns and three catches for 12 yards. Quarterback Steven Wilken (Ringwood, N.J./Lakeland Regional) and Dan Buonocore (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) also added scores on the ground, while sophomore Phil Terio (Trumbull, Conn./Trumbull) collected a solid special teams effort with six returns for 123 yards and touchdown.

After a scoreless first half, Salve Regina opened the scoring with a pair of touchdowns in the second frame to take a 14-0 lead at the break. Edwards put the Seahawks on the board with a 14 yard touchdown run at the 11:27 mark, while Terio capped the first half scoring with a 45 yard punt return.

Fitchburg State opened the game strong, receiving a 58 yard blast from sophomore Steph'fon Teague (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg), but a missed 35 yard field goal kept the Falcons off the board and swung the momentum in the Seahawks favor.

In the second half, Salve Regina immediately capitalized on a Fitchburg State turnover, setting up first and 20 after a Falcon fumble on the opening kickoff. Four plays later, the Seahawks found the pay dirt again as Edwards rushed for his second score of the day, a ten yard rush up the middle.

The Falcons continued to claw back for much of the second half, scoring a defensive touchdown midway through the third quarter. A block punt by junior Alex Acala (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) lead to a Tyler Robar (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) fumble recovery in the end zone and put Fitchburg State on the board with a 21-7 deficit.

Salve Regina answered the Fitchburg State score however, scoring a pair of late touchdowns in both the third and fourth quarters to seal the victory. Buonocore pounded a three yard touchdown rush up the middle at 1:22 of the third, while Wilken added a two-yard TD dash with 2:30 remaining in regulation.

For the Falcons, Teague broke the 100-yard plateau for the second straight contest, rushing 29 times for 123 yards, while Alcala and junior Talib Barksdale (Hudson, N.Y./Hudson) added ten tackles apiece on the defensive end.

Fitchburg State (1-2, 0-0 NEFC) will be back in action next Saturday as it hosts Maine Maritime at 12:00 p.m. Salve Regina (3-0, 0-0 NEFC) will host Endicott College next Saturday at 1 p.m.