WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. - The Monmouth University football team bounced back from their first loss of the season and scored 24 first half points en route to a 24-0 shutout over the Sacred Heart Pioneers Saturday afternoon at Kessler Field.
The shutout is Monmouth's first since last year, when they defeated Robert Morris 14-0 at Homecoming. It's the first time the Hawks' have shut out the Pioneers since 1997, when they defeated them 43-0. The game marks the first time the Pioneers have been shutout since November 6, 1999, when they lost 41-0 at Albany.
The win marked the 80th in Monmouth University football history, and head coach Kevin Callahan's 80th win as a head coach.
“I think it was a good, a solid effort by our team in all areas,” said coach Callahan. “It was good to get back on track. There are still some things that I think we could approve upon. We had a lot of penalties late in the game, had some drops that I'm concerned about but other than that I think it was a good, solid performance overall and it was a good way to bounce back off of last week's game.”
Both teams traded punts to begin the game but on Monmouth's second possession the Hawks' drove 42 yards on nine plays, culminating in a 25-yard field goal from Fred Weingert (New Egypt, N.J. /New Egypt) to give them a 3-0 lead with 4:13 showing on the first quarter clock.
On the ensuing Pioneer drive, linebacker Mike Castellano (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township) recovered an Evin Jones fumble after cornerback David Jiles (Paulsboro, N.J./Paulsboro) jarred the ball loose, giving Monmouth possession deep in Sacred Heart territory with 3:30 left in the first quarter.
Four plays later, quarterback Brian Boland (Brick, N.J./Brick Memorial) found wide receiver Shane Sharpley (Oak Ridge, N.J./West Milford) in the back of the end zone for a five yard touchdown pass. Weingert tacked on the extra point to give the Hawks' a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.
After the Hawks' held the Pioneers on their next drive, Monmouth went 55 yards on six plays, culminating in a Rob Lutz (New Cumberland, Pa. /Trinity) seven yard scoring run, to give the Blue and White a 17-0 lead after Weingert's successful extra point with 11:48 left before halftime.
The Monmouth first half onslaught continued as Boland kept alive the Hawks' next drive with a 14-yard scramble on third and four for a first down. David Sinisi (Cedar Grove, N.J./Cedar Grove) finished the drive on a two-yard touchdown run to give Monmouth a 24-0 lead with 1:58 left in the third quarter. The drive was a punishing 19 play, 90-yard journey through the Pioneer defense that last eight minutes and twenty-two seconds.
Erik Yngstrom (Freehold, N.J./Freehold Township) tallied a sack and half, with Kevin Walsh (Mt. Laurel, N.J./Lenape) tallying the other half, with 1:16 left before halftime.
The Hawks' got the ball back, but Boland was picked by Sacred Heart's Jon Wilson near midfield. Kicker Joe Schroeder missed a 52-yard field goal as the first half expired, and the Hawks' went into the locker room with a 24-0 lead.
At the half, the Hawks' had outgained the Pioneers in total yards 193-22, including holding the Pioneers to -28 yards on the ground at intermission while running for 90.
Safety Jamaal McClintock (Plainfield, N.J./Plainfield) picked off Pioneer quarterback Tyler Arciaga after he left the pocket and threw back across his body with 10:31 left in the game, ending the last significant Sacred Heart scoring threat.
For the game, Monmouth outgained Sacred Heart 320-88 in total yards, including outgaining the Pioneers 167-12 on the ground. The Hawks' held the ball for 34:38 of the game. Monmouth did commit 11 penalties for 101 yards in the contest.
The Hawks' were led offensively by Sinisi's 85 yards on 18 carries and one touchdown. He also caught two passes for 29 yards. Boland completed 15 of 23 passes for 118 yards and a touchdown. He also ran nine times for 36 yards in the game. Lutz had three carries for 16 yards and a score.
Brett Burke (Wall, N.J./Wall) came in and completed four of six passes for 35 yards.
Adam San Miguel (North Bergen, N.J. /St. Peter's Prep) led the Hawks' with eight catches for 51 yards. In the game, he surpassed Will Holder for second all-time on the Monmouth University career pass receptions list. His total of 119 is still 31 catches behind former Hawk teammate and current Dallas Cowboy Miles Austin's 150 career grabs.
In all, seven Hawks' caught passes and eight logged rushing attempts in the game.
The Monmouth defense harassed Sacred Heart quarterbacks into 11 of 29 for 88 yards and one interception. Defensive lineman Brian Sweeney (Marlton, N.J./Cherokee) batted down four Pioneer passes and had three tackles on the day.
Matt Hill (Hoptacong, N.J./Hoptacong) finished the game with seven tackles, which puts him in sole possession of seventh place on the Monmouth career total tackles list. Yngstrom and Walsh each had a sack and a half, and Joel Sechler (Slatington, N.J./Northern Lehigh) added a sack.
Monmouth returns to action next Saturday, October 14 when they travel to Staten Island for a 1 p.m. contest against the Wagner College Seahawks.
