Edgar Ayala – Sports Editor
The football team sent out their seniors on a positive note by securing a winning record for the first time since 2011, defeating Saint Anselm on Senior Day.
“We’ve spent a lot of long hours put into this,” said head football coach, Tom Godek. “We have been trying to dig out of this crater that’s occurred the past couple of seasons. It all started with last year’s senior class, and the momentum continued to build with this year’s class. It’s a credit to them and it’s a credit to the coaches for believing in what we are trying to accomplish here.”
Southern’s football team captured their third consecutive win in their 28-25 victory over Saint Anselm on Saturday, Nov. 5. The Owls finished off their regular season with a 6-4 overall record, and a 6-3 record in the conference.
Senior Corey Chaffee was one of 14 seniors honored prior to the game. Chafee said the win against the Hawks was huge for future Owls.
“We made a lot of big steps this year, and this was the finalized step,” Chaffee said. “If we didn’t finish this one off, then who knows what the program would have been next year. This win really sealed the deal and it’s going to move the program a lot moving forward.”
The Owls got off to a quick start – scoring in the opening 97 seconds and go 75 yards in four plays.
That opening score saw quarterback Raymond Catapano connect with Devante Jenkins on a 39-yard pass, and put the Owls up 7-0 after the PAT. Jenkins almost dropped the pass, as he juggled the ball four or five times before securing the ball in the end zone.
“Ray threw a great ball, and I didn’t let anyone get in the way of that,” said the senior, Jenkins. “It was just a great offensive play call, down to the execution.”
With the score, Jenkins finished No. 3 in the conference with nine touchdowns. He finished his career with Southern with 24 touchdowns in two years with the Owls.
The Owls never trailed in the game, and led Saint Anselm in scores of 14-0, 21-3, and 28-10. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter where the Hawks came alive to score two touchdowns – making it 28-25 with 3:17 left in the final quarter.
Saint Anselm then recovered the ball on an onside kick following the touchdown, and the Hawks were in Owls’ territory driving for the winning score with just over two minutes left in regulation.
But just when Southern was on the verge to blow a 28-10 lead, Chaffee intercepted Saint Anselm’s pass at Southern’s 37-yard line and would run 60 yards into Saint Anselm’s three-yard line.
“They’ve been running the same play all game,” said the senior defensive back, Chafee. “It was a quick three-yard slant and they called a swish on the last play. I saw my linebacker [Vasilios Grigorakos], he acted like he was going inside, and then he went outside.”
He added: “Right when he did that the quarterback looked right at the No. 2 receiver. When I saw that I took a guess, I gambled and came down and picked it off. It was huge, it really made my football career.”
After the Chaffee’s interception, Southern ran down the clock and secured their third straight win for the first time since 2013.
With the win, Southern finished No. 4 in the Northeast-10 Conference and will compete one last time in a third-place playoff game against the No. 3 team.
Cross-city rivals University of New Haven will battle it out with Southern Connecticut for a third-place championship game in West Haven, Conn. on Nov. 12 at noon.
Photo Credit: Edgar Ayala – Sports Editor
