For Immediate Release
December 1, 2011
South Easton, Mass. – Fresh off its 44-37 victory over Kutztown University this past Saturday, the University of New Haven football team of the Northeast-10 Conference is set to travel to North Carolina for this weekend's matchup with Winston-Salem State University in the NCAA Division II Quarterfinals.
The Game
The contest is slated for 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 3 at Bowman Gray Stadium in Winston-Salem, N.C.
New Haven, the fifth-ranked team in the country, owns an 11-1 record entering the contest. The Chargers' only loss of the year came back in Week 3 on the road against FCS school William & Mary. They will take on the undefeated Rams (12-0), with the winner advancing to the national semifinals the following weekend.
The No. 3 Rams are fifth in the nation in points allowed per game (16.33), which may make for an intriguing matchup against a Chargers offense that has averaged 43 points per contest.
Winston-Salem is coming off a 35-28 over California (Pa.) last Saturday to earn its spot in the quarterfinals.
Follow the Game
For up-to-the-minute updates from the game, follow the Northeast-10 on Twitter (@TheNortheast10).
You can also watch live video of the game free of charge courtesy of NCAA.com beginning at noon on Saturday.
To view the NCAA Division II Football Championship interactive bracket, click here.
To view complete game information courtesy of www.newhavenchargers.com, please click here.
The Coaches
For New Haven, head coach Peter Rossomando is currently in his third season with the Chargers. Meanwhile second-year head coach Connell Maynor, a former player at Winston-Salem, leads the Rams into Saturday's NCAA matchup against the explosive Chargers.
The Chargers
New Haven's dramatic victory last weekend over Kutztown featured eight lead changes in the offensive shootout. But down the stretch, the Chargers outscored the Golden Bears 18-3 throughout the majority of the fourth quarter before Kutztown converted a 25-yard touchdown play as time expired to account for the 44-37 final.
New Haven quarterback Ryan Osiecki, the 2011 Northeast-10 Conference Offensive Player of the Year, was 23-of-31 through the air for 433 yards in the victory. The junior also threw for five touchdowns and no interceptions.
Wide receiver Jason Thompson, a Northeast-10 First Team selection, caught four of those touchdown passes while amassing 214 yards receiving on just six catches.
The pass-and-catch duo between Osiecki and Thompson has been sensational all season long. 14 of Thompson's 38 catches have gone for touchdowns, and the junior is now just five yards shy of 1,000 on the season. Saturday marked the fourth 100-yard game of the year for the 6-foot-3 Thompson, who is averaging 82.9 receiving yards per game and 25.5 yards per catch.
Osiecki meanwhile has put together an exceptional season this fall. The transfer from the University of Louisville has thrown for 3,127 yards in 11 games while completing passes at a 67.3 percent rate. He has thrown for 35 touchdowns to just 10 interceptions and has also rushed for another eight scores.
Sophomore running back Mike DeCaro has 732 rushing yards on the year, good for an average of 61 yards per game on the ground. DeCaro has 10 rushing touchdowns and also has two kickoff returns for scores.
Also at Osiecki's disposal in the passing game has been a stellar receiving core around Thompson. Josh Smart has a team-high 45 receptions for 467 yards while Chris Ruffin is second on the team with 553 receiving yards on 38 catches. Seven of Demetrius Washington's 22 receptions have gone for scores, and tight end Kameel Lashley has 24 catches and four touchdowns.
Defensively, Charlie Hatchet leads the team with 87 total tackles, while cornerback Desmond Anderson has 74 tackles and two interceptions. Bernard Risco has 74 tackles as well, while Tom Herd leads the team with 10 sacks and has also contributed 52 tackles.
The Rams
In last weekend's NCAA victory over California (Pa.), the Rams extended its lead to 35-14 early in the second half, although the Vulcans would go on to score two consecutive touchdowns to make it a one-score game with 6:10 remaining in the third. But neither team managed to put up any points in the fourth quarter, allowing Winston-Salem to earn the victory.
Winston-Salem is led offensively by running back Nicholas Cooper, who is averaging 131.7 rushing yards per contest. He also leads the Rams with 20 touchdowns, while quarterback Kameron Smith has thrown for 30 touchdown passes on the year.
Cooper had 118 yards rushing and three touchdowns against California (Pa.), while Smith threw for 267 yards through the air and two scores.
Winston-Salem also boasts a top-10 defense in the country, allowing just over 278 yards of total offense per contest. Alton Keaton leads the Rams with 93 tackles and has also added two sacks, two interceptions, and two forced fumbles. Linebacker Carlos Fields is second on the team with 67 total tackles while contributing 4.5 sacks and three fumble recoveries.
The Rams have not allowed more than 28 points in any game this year (opponents have twice reached that threshold against them), while the Chargers have scored at least 44 points in eight of their 12 contests, including each of their last five.
Opposite the New Haven/Winston-Salem contest in the NCAA bracket, Wayne State will travel to Minnesota Duluth on Saturday (1:00 p.m.) in another quarterfinal matchup. The winner of each will face off in the national semifinals on Dec. 10, with the national championship game set for Dec. 17 in Florence, Alabama.
The Northeast-10 is an association of 16 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 5,500 student-athletes. Each year, 4,000 of those student-athletes compete in Conference championships in 23 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
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