By Ryan Barry

NEFJ Correspondent

WORCESTER — An overcast day at Fitton Field in Worcester, Massachusetts was the setting for a thrilling 21-20 win for the New Hampshire Wildcats (1-1) over the Holy Cross Crusaders (0-2).

With 1:39 left in the game, the Crusaders had the ball on their own 20-yard line with a chance to win the game, trailing 21-20.

A huge 32-yard pass from senior quarterback Joe Pesansky (19-for-29, 301 yards, one touchdown, one interception) to sophomore wide receiver Charly Mullaly (five receptions, 77-yards) set the Crusaders up at the Wildcat 43-yard line, with them just about in striking range of a field goal.

What seemed like a moment of reckoning for the Wildcats immediately flipped the other way, with the Crusaders committing three consecutive penalties to back them up to their own 37-yard line.

Senior defensive end Flex Ruiz (four total tackles) dropped Pesansky for an eight-yard sack, and senior safety Brendan Tighe (eight total tackles) sealed the game on the next play with an interception.

UNH head coach Rick Santos was thrilled with the way his team finished the game.

“They (the defense) were lights out, and we applied the pressure,” said Santos. “For us to force that many penalties on the last drive shows our ability to dictate the terms of engagement, I’m so proud of them.”

Defensive end Josiah Silver (seven total tackles, one sack) also spoke highly of his team’s defensive effort, as well as how they stood together throughout the game.

“You never want to lose your out-of-conference games, so we found a way to win,” said Silver. “Knowing that we are resilient enough to find a way to win this game, with all the adversity, is just going to help us boost the season.”

Offensively the Wildcats had a solid game despite turning the ball over twice in the red zone.

With fellow back Myles Thomason out for the foreseeable future, senior running back Isaac Seide (18 carries, 161 yards, one touchdown) stepped into the starting role with ease, posting his best ever game in a Wildcat uniform.

Seide was quick to give praise to his offensive line who helped set the tone for the afternoon.

“It was phenomenal, we were dominating up front the entire game,” noted Seide. “I knew from that first drive that we were going to have a great ground performance and it showed out.”

Senior quarterback Seth Morgan (17-for-22, 158-yards, two touchdowns, one interception) bounced back after his early interception, linking up with graduate wide receiver Logan Tomlinson (eight catches, 85-yards, two touchdowns) all afternoon.

The Crusaders struggled to get their run game going for most of the game, with senior running back Jordan Fuller (23 carries, 84 yards, one touchdown) averaging just 3.7 yards per carry.

Pesansky faced pressure for most of the afternoon, but had strong connections with senior tight end Jacob Peterson (six receptions, 110 yards, one touchdown) and senior wide receiver Justin Shorter (five receptions, 95 yards).

The win itself meant a lot to Santos who knows the team has struggled in their past few games against the Crusaders.

“It’s one of the toughest places to play in FCS football. We haven’t had good fortune here for whatever reason, “ said Santos. “We felt like if we needed to get back to a place where we’re playing meaningful games late in the year this was a must-win for us.”

The Crusaders won the opening toss and deferred to the second half, giving the Wildcats the chance to start the game on a high note.

After three first downs on three straight pass plays to help get into the red zone down, an errant Morgan throw in an area with no receivers saw senior defensive back Curtis Harris-Lopez make an athletic interception.

Each team took turns punting the ball from stalled drives before the Crusaders finally put some points on the board.

Daniel Porto’s 31-yard field goal gave the Crusaders a 3-0 lead in the dying embers of the first quarter after a drive that was helped by two Wildcat penalties.

Thanks to a 63-yard kick return from Caleb Mead, the Wildcats set up deep in Crusaders territory.

After a few big runs from Seide, Morgan found Tomlinson for a 12-yard touchdown pass to give the Wildcats a 7-3 lead.

With 6:43 to go in the first half, the Crusaders orchestrated a 13-play, 55-yard drive to set up Porto’s second field goal of the game, this time from 27 yards, to cut the Wildcat lead to 7-6.

The Crusaders started hot in the second half, with Pesansky finding Shorter on a 52-yard bomb just two plays into the quarter to set up in the red zone.

Just two plays later, Fuller notched his 42nd career rushing touchdown to give the Crusaders a 13-7 lead early in the third quarter.

The Wildcats hit right back, this time using Seide on nearly every play to advance the ball down the field.

With Morgan finding Tomlinson on a corner end zone fade from the two-yard line, their second touchdown connection of the day helped give the Wildcats the lead back at 14-13.

What felt like an already insane start to the half just kept going, as Pesansky found Peterson minutes later for a 71-yard touchdown pass off play-action to get the lead back at 20-14.

Seide nearly did it again on the ensuing Wildcats drive with a monster 61-yard run to the Crusaders three-yard line, only for Burke to lose the ball on a massive hit across the middle of the field.

The Crusader offense failed to capitalize on the fumble recovery, punting the ball back after a quick four and out.

With the Wildcats taking the ball across midfield on their next offensive drive, Holy Cross defense made a massive stop at their own 26-yard line to force a turnover on downs.

Another four and out for the Crusader offense made way for the Wildcats to regain the lead courtesy of a Seide one-yard touchdown run at the goal line.

Leading 21-20 with nine minutes to go in the quarter, the Wildcats offense had the ball two more times on offense but couldn’t put the game away.

With the Crusaders unable to register a comeback, Tighe’s interception secured the Wildcats first win of the season.

The UNH schedule certainly favors them in the coming weeks. After hosting two straight home games against Stonehill and Bryant, they have an early bye week to rest up before their road trip to Harvard in early October.

For the Crusaders, it only gets tougher from here. After a trip to Bryant next week, they’ll host Yale at home before a trip to Syracuse to take on the Orange.

For Crusaders head coach Dan Curran, growing pains are certainly expected, but late penalties are things that he’ll be thinking about tomorrow morning.