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CANTON, N.Y. -
George Marinopoulos found
Marc Meislahn in the end zone from seven yards out with 17 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) a 21-17 victory over St. Lawrence University in a Liberty League game at Leckonby Stadium.
Mike Tivinis had RPI's two other touchdowns, both on the ground.
The Saints jumped out to a 7-0 lead, marching 65 yards down the field on the first drive of the game. St. Lawrence quarterback Sean Richardson had completions of 32 and 36 yards to Vincenzo Ferraro and Travis Marnell, respectively, and Matt Cognetta was able to plunge into the end-zone on a one-yard rush.
RPI tied the game just over a minute later as Tivinis broke free for a 31-yard touchdown run. He scored again in the early stages of the second quarter to give the Engineers a 14-7 lead before both teams buckled down defensively.
Daly Hebert finally broke the stalemate, capping a 16-play, 70-yard drive with a 32-yard field goal to cut the RPI lead to four points early in the fourth quarter.
The Saints' defense held RPI to two first downs in their next three drives, as Tyler Burns intercepted a pass and the Engineers were forced to punt twice.
Facing fourth-and-one with 2:18 to play, Richardson shrugged off a pair of defenders and found Anthony Ferraro in single coverage down the right sideline. Ferraro got around the defender and sprinted towards the end zone for his first collegiate touchdown.
Marinopoulos, however, responded with an 11-play, 71-yard drive for the game's final score, threading a pass through three St. Lawrence defenders to Meislahn at the back of the end zone. Marinopoulos was 6-for-9 passing for 63 yards and also had an eight-yard run for a first down on the final drive.
Richardson was 26-for-48 passing for 332 yards, while Marinopoulos was 12-for-17 for 128 yards.
Vincenzo Ferraro had eight receptions for 129 yards, bringing his career total to 173 catches. Marnell also posted a 100-yard receiving game, making eight grabs for 116 yards.
Tivinis had 109 rushing yards on 15 carries, while the Saints struggled to move the ball on the ground, totaling just 43 yards on 25 carries.
Skyler Williamson led the Saints' defense with 12 tackles, while Burns had eight tackles to go with his interception.
Jack Hoggard had seven tackles and an interception to lead the Engineers.
The loss dropped the Saints to 2-6 overall, 1-3 in Liberty League play, while RPI improved to 6-2, 2-1.