Springfield, Mass. (September 17) -- After jumping out to an early 20-3 first-half lead, the Assumption College football team dropped a 37-27 final to American International in the Northeast-10 Conference opener for both teams.

On the first play from scrimmage, the Greyhounds got down to the two-yard line on a 63-yard pass to tight end Scott Simonson (Red Bank, N.J./Middletown South). Simonson caught the ball along the right sideline inside the 20-yard line and spun down to just shy of the goal line. The Yellow Jacket defense forced a turnover on the next play and the game remained scoreless until midway thru the opening quarter.

Assumption jumped on the board with 7:15 left in the period as junior Paul Perez (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) returned a punt 66 yards for the 6-0 advantage. On the ensuing AIC possession it was the Greyhounds that forced a turnover as Sonny Dillinger (Naples, Fla./St. John Neumann) picked off a pass at the 40-yard line of the Yellow Jackets. Assumption capitalized on the interception as freshman quarterback Kevin Bumpus (Bridgewater, Mass./Bridgewater-Raynham) scored from five yards out with 1:46 left to cap a 10-play, 60-yard drive and give the Hounds a 13-0 edge.

After a 30-yard field goal by AIC's Cesar Vaca-Hurtado cut the lead to 13-3, the Greyhounds put together another scoring drive early in the second. After a 48-yard kickoff return by sophomore Matt Pedone (Holden, Mass./Wachusett) put the Hounds in AIC, Bumpus later scored from two yards out for his second TD of the game and the 20-3 lead.

The Yellow Jacket defense helped close the gap with 5:30 left in the second quarter as Markell Rice scored on a 40-yard interception return for a touchdown. AIC pulled to within 20-17 just 2:55 later as quarterback Kevin Arduino went up the middle for a 58-yard score. Arduino had just come into the game at the beginning of the possession after not starting the game for the Yellow Jackets.

With the momentum swinging in favor of the Yellow Jackets, the Greyhound defense stopped AIC on the first possession and then struck with the first big play of the second half. Sophomore Sam Previte (Brockton, Mass./Brockton) came in at quarterback in the third quarter and found Pedone on a short screen pass down the Assumption sideline, which Pedone then turned upfield for a 91-yard score and a 27-17 edge.

After AIC cut the lead to 27-24 on a touchdown run from Matt Cardona to cap a five-play, 68-yard drive, the Yellow Jackets took the lead for good on a 25-yard touchdown reception by Terrell Williams with 1:10 left in the third. The only score of the fourth quarter came with 3:28 left in the game on a 12-yard interception return by AIC's Carron Mccluney for the 37-27 final.

Bumpus, one of three Greyhound quarterbacks that saw action, finished 11-for-20 for 171 yards, while Previte was 4-for-9 for 107 yards and a touchdown. Gabe Homiski (Preston, Conn./Norwich Free Academy) completed four passes for 50 yards as well. Perez caught a team-high five passes for 67 yards, while Pedone pulled down three passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. Pedone also led the team rushing with 66 yards on 16 attempts.

AIC was led by a 14-for-21 performance by Arduino for 209 yards and one touchdown, while Williams rushed 18 times for 112 yards.

Defensively for the Hounds, senior Nick DiAntonio (Milford, Mass./Milford) had 16 tackles, including five solo stops, to lead the defensive effort.

With the loss, the Greyhounds fall to 1-2 overall and 0-1 in Northeast-10 play, while the Yellow Jackets improve to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in league action.

The Greyhounds are back in action on Saturday, September 24 as Assumption hosts the University of New Haven for a 7 p.m. start at the Multi-Sport Stadium. That game is available live online with live video at www.assumptiongreyhounds.tv, powered by the Pack Network.