Sept. 6, 2008
Final Stats
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. - The Marist football team suffered a 28-6 loss to Lafayette of the Patriot League on Saturday night in a game played in a torrential downpour. Sophomore linebacker John Van Aman (Landing, N.J.), junior defensive back Nic Zivic (Coscob, Conn.) and junior linebacker Kurt Steubing (Massapequa, N.Y.) registered 12 tackles apiece for the Red Foxes, who dropped their home opener to fall to 0-2.
Lafayette got on the scoreboard first when Rob Curley hit Michael Conte with a 25-yard touchdown strike to cap a 10-play, 80-yard drive. Davis Rodriguez's extra point gave the Leopards a 7-0 lead with 4:41 left in the first quarter.
Early in the second quarter, Marist freshman Greg Whipple (Camillus, N.Y.) at the Lafayette one. Senior running back Obozua Ehikioya (West Hempstead, N.Y.) scored on a one-yard touchdown plunge on the next play. Although the extra point failed, Marist had cut the deficit to 7-6 with 14:10 to play in the second quarter.
The touchdown was the 36th of Ehikioya's career, putting him just five behind the late J.J. Allen for first place in Marist history.
With 7:14 remaining in the first half, Lafayette extended its lead to 14-6 when Curley dropped the snap, then picked it up and ran right through the middle for a 27-yard touchdown. The score capped a 10-play, 80-yard drive.
Marist drove deep into Lafayette territory on the next drive, and had a fourth-and-goal from the Lafayette. However, Ehikioya was thrown for a two-yard loss on the play to end the Marist scoring threat.
The score remained 14-6 in favor of Lafayette into the fourth quarter, when the Leopards took over the game on the ground. Maurice White's 38-yard scamper on the first play of the period put Lafayette up 21-6. White added a three-yard touchdown with 4:44 left to cap the scoring. The Leopards held the ball for 10:13 in the fourth quarter, 19:30 in the second half and 36:59 in the game.
White ran for 212 yards as Lafayette rolled up 318 rushing yards on 63 attempts. Curley finished 8-for-11 for 112 yards.
For Marist, Ehikioya ran for 33 yards on 12 carries. Junior quarterback Chris Debowski (Fountain Valley, Calif.) was 6-for-16 for 58 yards and an interception. Junior running back O'Neil Anderson (Dorchester, Mass.) led the Red Foxes with three receptions. Sophomore Kevin Pauly (Rochester, N.Y.) punted five times for an average of 47.8 yards per boot, including a long of 55.
Marist will return to action next Saturday, when the Red Foxes take on St. Francis (Pa.) at 1 p.m. The game will mark the first meeting between the Red Foxes and the Red Flash since 1998.
