October 13, 2007

#25 BRYANT FOOTBALL DEFEATS STONEHILL 34-6 SATURDAY
Bulldogs Take Over Sole Possession of First Place in Northeast-10 Conference

Sean Bergin had 70 yards receiving and caught two touchdowns in Bryant's 34-6 win over Stonehill on Saturday.  www.dspics.com

SMITHFIELD, RI - Sophomore Jerell Smith rushed for 105 yards and Charlie Granatell completed 17 of 23 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns as the 25^th-ranked Bryant University football team improved to 6-0 on the season with a 34-6 win over visiting Stonehill before a packed Bulldog Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The win gives Bryant sole possession of first place in the Northeast-10 Conference at 6-0 heading into next week's game at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH.   

Before a Parents & Family Weekend crowd of 5,434 - the second largest crowd in Bulldog Stadium history, Bryant capitalized on an early Stonehill turnover to start the scoring.  Senior defensive end Alessio Trabelsi forced Stonehill quarterback Cruz Parsons to fumble in the pocket on the Skyhawks' fourth play of the game's opening drive.  Tackle Jay Stahl was there to recover the ball for the Bulldogs at the Stonehill 10 yard line, giving the Bryant great field position right away.  Three players later, Granatell hit Sean Bergin for a four yard touchdown pass and the Bulldogs were off and running.

Two Chris Bird field goals (29, 28) put Bryant up 13-0 early in the second quarter.  From there, Smith scored from 6 yards out to make it 20-0 midway through the quarter and Lindsey Gamble (97 yards) scored on a 7 yard run to make it 27-0 just before halftime and the Bulldogs were never threatened.   Smith averaged 7 yards per carry, going over the 100 yard mark for the second game in a row.  The sophomore transfer from Howard had a career-best 125 in Bryant's win last week at C.W. Post.

Bryant's (6-0, 6-0 NE-10) offense dominated the first half as the Bulldogs had 291 yards of total offense while the defense limited Stonehill to just 91 yards in the first half alone.

Stonehill (4-2, 4-1 NE-10), which came into the game tied with Bryant for first place in the conference, would finally get on the board as Parsons hit JJ Niamkey in the back of the end zone for a 30-yard touchdown pass with 8:06 left in the third.  The point after attempt was blocked, leaving the score 34-6. 

Bryant's defense pressured the Stonehill offense all afternoon, limiting the visitors to just 46 yards rushing.  The Bulldogs sacked Parsons five times in the game including two by Trabelsi. Stonehill, which finished with 281 yards of offense in the game, went 0 for 6 on third-down conversions and failed to convert two fourth down attepts.  After just 65 yards in the first half, Parsons finished the game completing 17 of 29 passes for 235 yards.

Senior Sean Bergin caught five passes for 70 yards, catching two touchdown passes from Granatell including a 28-yard dazzler to start the third.

The Bulldogs travel to Saint Anselm next Saturday for a 1 p.m. game before traveling to Stony Brook for a non-conference game Oct. 27 and Southern Connecticut on Nov. 2.  The next home game for Bryant will be in three weeks, Nov. 10 against Bentley.  

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