Stony Brook’s football team dominated the first half against Syracuse University, but the speed of the game and late penalties cost the Seawolves their third game of the season.
The 28-17 win for Syracuse snapped a seven game losing streak, while Stony Brook finished with its first loss of the season.
Stony Brook silenced the crowd of 34, 512 at the Carrier Dome on Saturday when senior quarterback Kyle Essington found wide receiver senior Kevin Norrell for a 63-yard touchdown pass, giving Stony Brook an early 7-0 lead.
“That was a big play in the game plan,” said Essington. “We just executed it well, he ran a great route and it was nice to start the game off like that.”
Syracuse wasn’t going to fall that easily, and it answered back less than a minute later when quarterback Ryan Nassib found runningback Prince-Tyson Gulley for a 61-yard pass.
Stony Brook proved to be the stronger team in the first half, but by the second, it seemed to have a hard time keeping up.
“The speed of the game got to us a little bit in the second half,” said coach Chuck Priore.
The Seawolves only scored 49 yards in the second half and struggled to keep up with Syracuse’s rushed style of play. Syracuse had 549 offensive yards in the game, while Stony Brook only had 310.
“At the end of the day, we didn’t come to play the second half,” said senior Stony Brook running back Miguel Maysonet, who finished with 163 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Maysonet’s touchdown was voted #1 in ESPN SportsCenter Top 10 College Football Plays as he hurdled over a defender on his way to the end zone, but coach Priore made sure to give another player partial credit for the astounding play.
“Mike Lisi, our center, had a tremendous block on that play,” said Priore.
The second half was rough for the Seawolves, as their defense began to slow down and their offense was unable to produce.
The Carrier Dome, which can be deafening at times due to the enclosed arena and large crowd, was a factor in the game for Stony Brook.
“It caused some communication problems in the huddle, but that’s part of football,” said Priore.
Despite the loss, Stony Brook has now proved that it can compete and hold its own against major Division I football teams.
In two weeks, Stony Brook will be faced with another tough test when it takes on Army.
“It’s a tough loss,” said Essington. “We’ve got to keep working and were looking forward to next week.”
The Seawolves’ next game, which is also their homecoming game will be against Colgate and will take place on Saturday, Sept. 22 at LaValle Stadium.
