EDINBORO, Pa. – The Bloomsburg University football team fell in overtime to Edinboro, 23-20, in its first road game of the 2022 season. The Huskies dropped to 1-2 for the year while the Fighting Scots improved to 2-1.
 
The Huskies got the ball first in the overtime period. Bloomsburg faced a 4^th-and-12 at the Edinboro 27, and freshman kicker Brendan McGonigle (Ocean City, N.J./Ocean City) connected on a 37-yard field goal to give the Huskies a 20-17 lead.

Nadir McLeod (Philadelphia, Pa./Martin Luther King) appeared to have intercepted the first pass from the Fighting Scots on their overtime possession, but a defensive pass interference penalty was called. Edinboro got a short pass to the 12, and after another penalty, the Fighting Scots were at the Bloomsburg 2-yard line. Keon Anderson bounced off one tackle and found the short way to the end zone for the winning touchdown.
 
The Fighting Scots struck first with a late first-quarter field goal. With 6:17 to play in the opening quarter, Edinboro began its third drive of the quarter. Starting at the Bloom-24, thanks to a short-field fumble recovery on the previous possession, the Fighting Scots got down to the Huskies' 5-yard-line. On 3^rd-and-2, Kenny Yurkonis (Minersville, Pa./Minersville Area) sacked Isaac Bernard for a loss of five yards to push Edinboro back to the 10-yard line and force a fourth-down. Richie Pekmezian connected on a 22-yard field goal to give Boro a 3-0 lead.
 
The Huskies got on the board midway through the second quarter as an interception for Chris Monaco (Pocono Pines, Pa./Pocono Mountain West), which he returned for 23 yards, set up a short field for freshman KJ Riley (Danville, Pa./Danville Area) and the Huskies. On the first play of their drive, Riley connected with Matthew Bowes (Somerton, Pa./La Salle College HS) down the middle of the field for a 25-yard touchdown, and the extra point gave Bloomsburg a 7-3 lead.
 
Edinboro answered on their final drive of the half as the Fighting Scots went 56 yards on four plays and just 50 seconds of game time to find the end zone on a 38-yard pass from Bernard to Mike Watkins. The Fighting Scots carried a 10-7 lead into halftime.
 
Both teams struggled to score in the third quarter before McGonigle connected on a 20-yard field goal to tie the game 10-10 with eight seconds to play in the quarter.
 
With just eight seconds left in the quarter, the Fighting Scots ran their final play before the fourth, and the one-yard rush turned into a fumble by Angelo Bartolini, forced by Ryan D'Ambra (Southampton, Pa./Archbishop Wood). Tom Goetz (Wenonah, N.J./Gateway Regional) recovered the loose ball and scurried 19 yards into the endzone. McGonigle hit the extra point, and the Huskies led 17-10 at the end of the quarter.
 
After the two teams traded three punts to open the final period in regulation, the Fighting Scots got their second interception of the game, giving Edinboro a short field with which to work. Starting at the Bloomsburg 3-yard line, Anderson carried the ball twice, the second a one-yard run into the endzone and the tying score.
 
The Huskies had the ball with 2:59 to play in regulation and after a 31-yard pass from Riley to Nas Jones (Williamsport, Pa./Williamsport Area) got Bloomsburg down to the Edinboro 6-yard line, a holding penalty brought the Huskies back to the Boro 37. As time was running out, the Huskies tried for two final plays but couldn't break the tie, and the game headed into Bloomsburg's second overtime game of the season.
 
Riley went 9-for-23 with 125 yards and a touchdown, while Kaleb Monaco (Pocono Pines, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) rushed for 67 yards on 23 attempts. Bowes caught four passes for 54 yards.
 
Defensively, D'Ambra led the team with 10 total tackles, while Yurkonis had a pair of sacks for a loss of 12 yards. Chris Monaco (Pocono Pines, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) had an interception for a 23-yard return while Aaron Trumino (Binghamton, N.Y./Chenango Valley), Goetz, and John Aston (Centre Hall, Pa./Penns Valley) recovered a fumble for the Huskies.
 
Bloomsburg looks to rebound next week as the Huskies return home to host Shippensburg in the first Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East game of the season. Kick-off from Redman Stadium is set for 2:00 pm on September 24.