Hillburn, N.Y. - The second season of Molloy sprint football began with a hard-fought 14-13 loss to St. Thomas Aquinas College from the Torne Valley Complex.

How it Happened

• The Lions started the contest with the ball at their own 38. The opening drive lasted 15 plays and included rushes from sophomore Marquis Dixon and freshman Jalen Gordon and Ryan Downes as well as a receptions by sophomore Peter von Schoenermarck and freshman Vaughn Washington.
• Sophomore Timmy Stostko lined up for a 26-yard field goal attempt to give the program its first-ever lead, but missed to the left.
• The Molloy defense showed strength in their first appearance of 2025, allowing the Spartans just 14 yards with tackles from senior John Zarnowski and sophomores Matt McCall and Anthony DiSalvo and junior Robby Melendez.
• The Spartans would score on the team's second possession of the game with a 15 yard pass to Eric Neal Jr. and took a 7-0 lead which remained through halftime.
• Midway through the first quarter, freshman Ayden Das recovered a fumble to give the Lions the ball at the STAC 37 yard line.
• Downes rushed for five yards before junior quarterback Paulie Drummond V connected with von Schoenermarck for a 30-yard touchdown pass. Stosko's extra point was good to tie the contest at seven.
• Late in the third quarter, the Spartans added a score with an 11-yard touchdown run from Aaron Cruz to lead 14-7. 
• Facing second and two to start the fourth quarter, Drummond rushed for six yards to secure Molloy the first down. 
• Another rush from Drummond (seven yards) paired with one from Downes (three yards) set the stage for a first and 10 at the 20 yard line.
• Downes ran the ball in for an 18-yard touchdown run.
• With just eight minutes remaining and the defense looking strong, the cardinal and white set up for a two-point conversion attempt, but the pass failed, setting the score at 14-13.
• McCall recovered a fumble for the Lions with just over five minutes to play at the Molloy 44-yard line. 
• A 20-yard run from Dixon brought the Lions inside STAC territory, but Molloy turned the ball over on downs just after the two-minute warning. 
• The Spartans drained as much clock as possible, handing the ball back to the Lions at their own 35-yard line with just 25 seconds and no time outs to work with, resulting in four incomplete pass attempts to close the contest.

Top Performances

• Drummond went 5-for-14 for 50 yards with one touchdown.
• Dixon led with 72 rushing yards with Downes following with 60, including the touchdown.
• von Schoenermarck had two receptions for 35 yards and the touchdown.
• Das led the Lions with seven total tackles. Zarnowski followed with six while McCall and DiSalvo each made four. 
• Stosko had two punts on the afternoon, including one of 62 yards, to go with the extra point. 

Up Next
Molloy will open the home portion of the 2025 schedule on Friday (Sept. 26) against Cornell at 7:00 p.m. from Mitchel Field.