Football beats St. Peter's

By Adam Bagni
Collegian Staff
November 15, 2006

The football team was able to defeat St. Peter’s College 37-28 Thursday at Cochrane Field in Jersey City, N.J.

Thankfully for the Explorers, the squad won the battle and pushed the Peacocks into USA Today’s bottom slot in the Sagarin College Football Rankings.

In his final game, senior wide receiver Lou Russo made 13 catches for 168 yards, and his performance was good enough to reach the La Salle record for receptions in a single season. Russo finished the season with 71 receptions.

For their efforts, two Explorers also earned MAAC Player of the Week honors after the victory.

Sophomore quarterback Chris Hanson earned Offensive Player of the Week after lighting up St. Peter’s for 322 yards and three touchdowns on 28 of 36 completions.

Freshman linebacker Brian Winn was named MAAC Rookie of the Week after sacking Peacock quarterback Scott Bonnono three times.

La Salle iced the game with 2:08 remaining, when sophomore C.J. Creighton broke through for a 36-yard touchdown run. The touchdown was the second on the night for Creighton, who also had the go-ahead score with a two-yard run late in the third quarter.

Early in the game, it looked as if the Peacocks were about to lead the Explorers to another dismal loss. Bonnono threw a six-yard touchdown to John Bond, and after the Explorers scored a touchdown on a 10-yard catch by junior Geoff Nagle, St. Peter’s responded with 14 unanswered points.

Anthony Bey returned a punt from sophomore Anthony Perlozzo 90 yards for a score, and Sydney Murray forced a fumble by Hanson and returned it 72 yards to paydirt.

Down 21-7, La Salle refused to go away. Junior Bernie Cevis caught a six-yard touchdown pass, and Perlozzo hit a career long 44-yard field goal to cut the lead to 21-17 at halftime.

In the second half, freshman Eric Frazier caught a three-yard touchdown pass, while on the defensive side of the ball, senior Mark Moraca picked up his only interception of the season.

The Explorers finished the season with a 3-7 record. The win against St. Peter’s was La Salle’s first MAAC win this year (1-3).

bagnia1@lasalle.edu