The No. 20 Stony Brook football team lost for the first time in over a month Saturday afternoon, as the team fell on the road against New Hampshire, 43-14, in Durham, New Hampshire.

Moment that mattered: Trailing by one possession at halftime, Stony Brook received the ball to begin the third quarter. Redshirt sophomore quarterback Joe Carbone threw an interception on the third play of the drive, setting up a New Hampshire touchdown to put the home team up 22-7. From there, the Wildcats pulled away, sending the Seawolves to their first conference loss.

What the loss means: Losing a road game in a difficult venue is not the worst defeat, but it does end the Seawolves’ bid at an undefeated Colonial Athletic Association conference season. Stony Brook is now 4-1 in CAA play and 5-3 overall with three conference games left on the schedule. The Seawolves may be able to afford one more loss and still make the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs, as New Hampshire qualified last season with a 7-4 overall record.

Standout Seawolf: Graduate wide receiver Tim Keith made five catches in the passing game for Stony Brook for 82 yards. On a 3rd-and-8 play in the first quarter, Keith broke through the defense on a seam route for 30 yards, setting up the team’s first touchdown to cut the lead to 15-7. In the third quarter, Keith caught another long pass — this time on a perfect lob over the defense — for a Stony Brook touchdown.

Three takeaways:

• Stony Brook could not have started the game worse than it did. After receiving the opening kickoff, New Hampshire went on a 10-play, 59-yard touchdown drive to take a 7-0 lead. On the ensuing possession, Carbone threw an interception, returned for a touchdown. The Wildcats completed a two-point conversion and took a 15-0 lead less than four and a half minutes into the contest. The Seawolves defense stepped up throughout the next two quarters, allowing only five more total yards before struggling in the second half.
  
• The Seawolves were unable to find consistent success in the running game. Redshirt junior Stacey Bedell ran for only 15 yards on 12 carries, the lowest total of his season, while the team as a whole had 103 yards on 44 carries on the ground.
• With Stony Brook trailing for the entirety of the game, Carbone was cast in a different role than is typical for him: a gunslinger. The quarterback made some nice passes, including the two long passes to Keith, but he also made some costly errors. Carbone threw four interceptions in the game, three of which led directly to New Hampshire touchdowns.

What’s next: Stony Brook returns home for a game against William and Mary next Saturday, Nov. 5, at 2 p.m.