Worcester, Mass. (September 20) -- In a shootout in the home opener on Friday night, Assumption College dropped a thrilling 41-38 overtime final to visiting Stonehill College in front of a standing-room only crowd of over 2,500 at the Multi-Sport Stadium.

Assumption jumped on the board just 5:03 into the first quarter as a one-yard run from senior quarterback Bobby Jordan (Cromwell, Conn./Cromwell) capped a 14-play, 82-yard drive for the early 7-0 lead. The Hounds continued to effectively run the ball and just over five minutes later, junior Matt Heriveaux (Everett, Mass./Malden Catholic) rumbled in from 14 yards out for his first touchdown of the season and the 14-0 Assumption lead.

Stonehill answered back with 2:41 left in the high-scoring first as the Skyhawks took advantage of a Hounds turnover and converted it into seven points as Nate Robitaille hauled in a 32-yard touchdown pass to cut the lead to 14-7. The Hounds weren't done in the period though as senior All-American tight end Scott Simonson (Red Bank, N.J./Middletown South) caught a Jordan pass around the 30-yard line and used a blocker and a cut back to the right to rumble into the end zone for a 56-yard touchdown pass and a 21-7 edge after one quarter.

The second quarter saw over 14 minutes of scoreless action before Stonehill used a 52-yard catch up the near sideline from Corey White to get the Skyhawks down inside the five-yard line to the four. White scored on second down and goal moments later as he hauled down a score in the right corner of the end zone to make it a 21-14 margin at the half. The Hounds outgained the Skyhawks by a 294-156 in total offense in the half, including a 140-34 edge on the ground behind 71 yards from senior Matt Pedone (Holden, Mass./Wachusett).

Early in the third, it was Assumption that forced the turnover as junior Dane Myers (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Poughkeepsie) picked off Logan Meyer in the opening minutes of the quarter. On third down and three, Pedone took the ball and cut to the far corner of the end zone for a 45-yard touchdown and the 28-14 lead.

Meyer and the Skyhawks marched right back down the field though as Meyer found Robitaille at the goal line right down the middle of the field to cut the lead back down to one possession at 28-21 with 10:09 left in the third. Robitaille caught the ball just shy of the goal line and barely fell into the end zone as it took the officials a moment to signal for his second touchdown catch of the night. Meyer pulled the visitors all the way back to even it up at 28 with 4:10 on the clock in the third as he ran it in to the right side from three yards out for the team's fourth touchdown of the contest.

Stonehill nearly took its first lead of the game with just over 10 minutes left in the final quarter, but a 40-yard field goal attempt by the Skyhawks' Steve Grzywacz went wide left and short. Assumption answered though to regain the lead and break the first tie of the game as Pedone rumbled 53 yards up the near sideline and outran the Stonehill defense for his second touchdown of the game with 9:01 remaining.

Assumption had an opportunity to regain possession with just over four minutes left in the fourth as the Hounds had Stonehill in a fourth down and six situation following a false start penalty by Assumption. Meyer went for the home run shot though as he found a diving Zaire Reiph in the end zone from 47 yards out to tie the game up again at 35-35 with 4:06 remaining.

Stonehill had two chances to take the lead in the remainder of regulation as Robitaille dropped a wide-open pass with 1:37 left, along with a missed 35-yard field goal as time ran out in the fourth by Grzywacz. The kick was just wide left as the Assumption College student section and sideline celebrated the game going to overtime, while the Stonehill sideline stormed the field thinking the game was over.

In the overtime, the Hounds took a 38-35 lead on a 44-yard field goal by senior Tad Beuchert (Danvers, Mass./Saint John's Prep) as he cleared the crossbar by over five yards. On the ensuing Stonehill possession, the Hounds forced a third down and 10 situation while clinging to a three-point lead. Meyer was poised though and found Gordon McLeod behind the Assumption defense for the 14-yard game-winning score to cap off a wild game.

Pedone led the Hounds offense with a career-high 187 yards and two touchdowns on 26 rushing attempts, while Simonson pulled down five receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown. Jordan was effective as he completed 17-of-30 passes for 213 yards and one touchdown. As a team, the Hounds ran the ball for 253 yards and gained 466 yards of total offense.

For Stonehill, Meyer completed 27-of-49 passes for 367 yards and five touchdowns, while Jamal Johnson posted 117 rushing yards. Robitaille was their leading receiver with 13 receptions for 185 yards and a pair of scores.

Defensively, senior Mike Bates (Holden, Mass./Wachusett) led the Hounds with nine total tackles, including a tackle for loss and a pass breakup.

With the loss, Assumption falls to 1-2 overall and 1-1 in the Northeast-10, while Stonehill is now 2-1 overall and is 2-0 in league action.

Assumption returns to action on Friday, September 27th as the Hounds travel to Springfield, Mass. to take on American International for a 7 p.m. start at Abdow Field.