BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – The Bloomsburg University football team battled for 60+ minutes against newly Division I Stonehill College Skyhawks but ultimately fell 33-30 in double overtime Saturday afternoon.
 
The Huskies used a balanced running game and took advantage of critical mistakes by the Skyhawks to nearly pull off the upset in the final scheduled meeting between the two teams.
 
Stonehill got on the board with a 24-yard field goal on their opening drive. The Skyhawks went 69 yards and used just over seven minutes of gameplay but had to settle for a chip-shot field goal to take a 3-0 lead in the first quarter.
 
After the Huskies had to punt from their 48-yard line, the Bloomsburg defense forced a three-and-out, and the Huskies took over at their 20-yard line. The Huskies marched down the field and used eight and a half minutes of game time that took the game into the second quarter. Freshman Brendan McGonigle (Ocean City, N.J./Ocean City) capped the drive with a 22-yard field goal to tie the game at 3-3 with 11:19 to play in the quarter.
 
The Skyhawks fumbled the ensuing kickoff, and Deeko Kofa (Philadelphia, Pa./Samuel Fels) recovered the loose ball at the Stonehill-25 to set up a short field for the Huskies. Bloomsburg took full advantage of the excellent field position to punch into the endzone for its first lead. Zane Janiszewski (Hollisterville, Pa./Western Wayne) carried the ball eight yards before John Mack (Minisink Valley, N.Y./Minisink Valley) caught a 15-yard pass from KJ Riley (Danville, Pa./Danville Area) to get down to the two-yard line. Facing 1^st and Goal from the two, the Huskies returned to Janiszewski to push into the endzone. The sophomore running back got into the endzone, but the ball came loose as he crossed the plane, and John Ayres (Mt. Carmel, Pa./Mt. Carmel) jumped on it to recover the fumble for a touchdown, his first game. McGonigle connected on the extra point, and the Huskies took a 10-3 lead early in the second quarter.
 
Stonehill's next drive ended with another shot field goal thanks to another defensive stop by the Huskies. Stonehill looked poised to get into the endzone as the Skyhawks faced a 1^st-and-10 from the Bloomsburg 11, but after a six-yard run on second down, Ron Long (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan) broke up Ashur Carraha's next pass on third down to force a field goal on 4^th-and-4 from the Bloomsburg 5-yard line. Perry Shelbred's kick was good, and the Skyhawks cut the Bloomsburg lead to 10-6.
 
The Huskies' third possession of the second quarter ended in another punt, but Bloomsburg got the ball right back after the Skyhawks muffed the punt, and Ayres recovered the fumble at the Stonehill-11 to give the Huskies a short distance to get into the endzone.
 
Once again, the Huskies capitalized on the Skyhawks' mistake and needed just three plays to get into the endzone. Janiszewski rushed for two yards before Riley connected with Owen Anderson (Cogan Station, Pa./Jersey Shore Area) for eight yards and a Huskies' first down. Janiszewski was called on again to push the pile forward from the 1-yard line, and after another McGonigle extra point, the Huskies led 17-6 with 1:21 to play in the half.
 
The Skyhawks used all of that 1:21 to close out the half and found their way into the endzone for the first time in the game, and the Huskies carried a 17-13 lead into halftime.
 
Bloomsburg received the kick to open the second half and went 3-and-out before the Skyhawks marched down the field after starting at their own 18. The Skyhawks had a 2^nd-and-5 from the Bloomsburg-20, and Joseph Kahn (Selinsgrove, Pa./Selinsgrove) picked up the first sack of the year, a nine-yard loss, to push the Skyhawks back. Stonehill got nine yards back on the next play but couldn't move the chains and had to settle for another field goal.
 
Leading by one, 17-16, with 6:50 to play in the third, the Huskies began their drive on their 35-yard line. Jerry Griffen-Batchler opened the drive with a 16-yard scramble down the near sideline to get into Stonehill territory. Kaleb Monaco (Pocono Pines, Pa./Pocono Mountain West) followed up with a 13-yard run of his own to get down to the 36-yard line. The Huskies chipped away at the clock and yardage with nine-straight runs, including a 10-yard scramble by Riley and a four-yard touchdown run for Ayres on 3^rd-and-1 from the four-yard line.
 
The Huskies forced a three-and-out on the next Skyhawks drive, and McGonigle hit another field goal, this time a 44-yard attempt from the 34-yard line, and the Huskies led 27-16.
 
Stonehill looked poised to cut into the lead on its next drive, but Carraha threw into the endzone on 2^nd-and-15 from the Bloom-15 and, instead of finding a teammate in a white jersey, found Quentin Gaskill (Waynesboro, Pa./Waynesboro) waiting for the pass and grabbed his first interception of the season.
 
The Skyhawks scored on their next two drives and needed a 31-yard field goal with 13 seconds left on the clock to send the game into overtime.
 
Riley knelt for the final regulation play, and the Huskies headed into overtime.
 
Bloomsburg won the toss and elected to defend first. The Huskies kept the Skyhawks out of the endzone on their first possession, and Shelbred missed his field goal attempt to keep the game tied.
 
The Huskies struggled to move the ball forward on their overtime possession, and the two teams headed into a second overtime.
 
Getting the ball first, a pair of short runs by Tyshaun Pollard (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin East) sandwiched around a four-yard run from Janiszewski got the Huskies down to the four-yard line. McGonigle knocked a 33-yard field goal attempt through, and the Huskies took a 30-27 lead.
 
The Skyhawks relied on Jarel Washington to run the ball, carrying it six times, including a two-yard run to give Stonehill the 33-30 win.
 
Monaco carried the ball 19 times for 52 yards, while Ayres had a pair of touchdowns on the ground. Riley went 7-for-12 for 48 yards in the air and rushed for another 38.
 
Gaskill led the Huskies with 12 tackles, including a pair of sacks for 23 yards. Gaskill forced a fumble, had one interception, and broke up three passes.

Bloomsburg looks to bounce back next Saturday as the Huskies host Clarion for a 2:00 p.m. kick-off.