LEWISBURG, Pa. -- The Marist football team suffered a 28-14 loss at Bucknell of the Patriot League on Saturday night at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium. Senior running back Ryan Dinnebeil (River Vale, N.J.) and senior wide receiver Kevin Fitzpatrick (Columbia, Md.) scored touchdowns for the Red Foxes (1-1), who were led in tackles by sophomore safety Nick Kaszei (Brook Park, Ohio) with 10.
A pair of touchdown passes from Bucknell quarterback Brandon Wesley gave the Bison a 14-0 lead less than a minute into the second quarter. However, with 2:02 left in the first half, Dinnebeil's 10-yard touchdown run and the subsequent extra point by junior kicker Jason Myers (Chula Vista, Calif.) cut Bucknell's lead in half at 14-7. Marist's scoring drive covered 45 yards on five plays, with Dinnebeil gaining 21 yards on three carries in that span.
The score remained 14-7 until Tyler Smith capped Bucknell's first drive of the second half with a six-yard touchdown run as the Bison took a 20-7 lead. However, Marist answered right back, as a three-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Chuckie Looney (Ocala, Fla.) to Fitzpatrick capped a 12-play, 63-yard drive. Myers' extra point made the score 20-14 with 6:42 left in the third quarter.
Bucknell drove deep into Marist territory on its next drive, but junior defensive end Terrence Fede (Nyack, N.Y.) blocked a 28-yard field goal attempt with 13:21 remaining in the fourth quarter. Each team then went three-and-out on its next series, and Marist took over at its own 10 with 9:35 to play. However, Bucknell's Samuel Oyekoya recovered a fumble on the Marist 35 with 7:16 to go. Jeremiah Young then capped a six-play drive with an eight-yard touchdown run with 3:42 to go. Wesley then ran for a two-point conversion to put Bucknell 28-14.
Bucknell held a 36:21-23:29 edge in time of possession. The Bison held the ball for 11:17 in the first quarter. Bucknell also held a 251-227 edge in total yards.
For Marist, Dinnebeil led the ground game with 50 yards on 10 carries. Looney finished 16-for-33 for 171 yards through the air with one touchdown and two interceptions. Fitzpatrick had a team-high five receptions, and sophomore wideout Armani Martin (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) had a team-high 52 receiving yards on four receptions.
Defensively, Kaszei's 10 tackles were a career high. In addition to his blocked kick, Fede had six tackles (including two for losses), a sack and a pass break-up. Senior linebacker Ryan Cronan (Hampton, N.H.) and junior linebacker Mike Hagemann (Vernon, N.J.) also had sacks.
Marist will return to action next Saturday in its Pioneer Football League opener at Dayton (1-1). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.
Notes: Fitzpatrick now has 26 receptions for 300 yards in his last four games. ... Dinnebeil's touchdown was the 19th of his career, which ranks him fourth all-time in Marist's FCS history. ... Marist has seven sacks in its first two games after registering two all of last season. ... Three of Bucknell's scoring drives began in Marist territory. The average starting field position for the Bison on their drives was its own 43, while Marist's average starting point was its own 26.
