Football

Gerard Festa ran for 161 yards and two touchdowns in a losing cause for EC

Gulls Clipped by Hawks

Sept. 3, 2005

Stats

Beverly, MA -- The end result may not have been what Endicott and its head coach J.B. Wells were looking for, but there were enough positives in the Gulls' season opener to be optimistic about the 2005 season.

Endicott sustained a tough 27-20 defeat versus Hartwick College Saturday at Endicott College, but Wells wanted his team to stay positive and keep their heads held high.

That's because the Gulls dominated every statistical category and had every right to win the nip-and-tuck game. But Hartwick answered every Endicott score and came up with plays at key moments throughout the game to equal its win total from a year ago.

"Endicott is a very good football team. They're experienced and fundamentally sound. I'm just happy to come away with a win on their field," said Hartwick head coach Mark Carr.

Junior running back Gerard Festa did everything possible to help the Gulls. The Revere native a career day, shredding the Hawks for 161 yards (8.5 yards per carry) and two touchdowns on 19 touches. Festa's highlight reel 27-yard touchdown with 7:06 remaining in the third staked Endicott to a 20-19 advantage, but it wasn't enough.

Hartwick orchestrated an 11-play drive that culminated in Tyler DeMulder's game-winning touchdown from two yards with 14:26 remaining in the contest.

In reality, the game should not have been undecided in the fourth quarter. Endicott racked up over 380 yards in total offense to Hartwick's 298 and held a 33:09 to 26:51 time of possession advantage. But the Gulls also turned the ball over three times to the Hartwick's one.

"We really beat ourselves," said Wells. "We had a lot of penalties and mental mistakes in what was a winning game. But I'm proud of the effort and these mistakes are correctable. And I believe a loss is only a loss if you don't learn from your mistakes."

The Hawks, who play in the ultra-competitive Empire 8 Conference, got off the bus ready to play and Lindy Crea opened the scoring with an 87-yard kickoff return on the first play of the game to spot the visitors a 6-0 cushion. After Festa plunged in from one yard out, Hartwick regained the lead, 13-7, early in the second quarter when Frank Vozos stripped quarterback Vinny Orlando and romped into the endzone.

Orlando had a solid day in the pocket, throwing for 166 yards and one touchdown. Wideout Ryan MacLean was Orlando go-to-guy, pulling in eight passes for 136 yards, including a 45-yard circus catch in the seam of the Hawks' defense.

Defensively, TJ Sawyer added an interception while middle linebacker Mike Kelley (6.5 tackles), Pego Jean-Paul (5.5 tackles) and Orlando Johnson (4.5 tackles) stood out.

The road does not get any easier as the Gulls travel to R.P.I next Saturday.

"R.P.I. is going to be better than Hartwick. But our goal is still the same: to win a non-conference game," said Wells.