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Post University Athletics

Josh Tracey
Leyri Rivera
17
Post POS 1-8 , 0-0
41
Winner American Int'l AIC 3-7 , 1-5
Post POS
1-8 , 0-0
17
Final
41
American Int'l AIC
3-7 , 1-5
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
POS Post 7 3 0 7 17
AIC American Int'l 7 13 6 15 41

Game Recap: Football | | Michael Vesci, Director of Athletic Communications

Football Falters Behind Strong Second Half for AIC in Penultimate Game of the Season

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Hoping to start the close of their season on a high note with back-to-back road games, Post University Football traveled north to Springfield, Massachusetts to take on American International College on Saturday afternoon, a team they will regularly see starting next season when they join the Northeast-10 Conference.
 
After a strong first-half performance by the offense, the Eagles would be unable to sustain that momentum into the second half as the Yellow Jackets ground game would take control to the tune of 21 second-half points, helping to drop Post University, 41-17.

THE BASICS

Post University 17, American International College 41 

Post University (1-8)

American International College (3-7)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Playing one of his best halves of the season, graduate quarterback Simon Burkett would throw for 141 yards on 7-of-10 passing with one touchdown, leading to 10 points offensively for the Eagles, the most they have put up in the first half this season since the fourth game of the year against Saint Anselm when they scored 14 points heading into halftime.
 
Burkett's first drive of the game would last 11 plays and 73 total yards, culminating in a 21-yard touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Josh Tracey who hauled in his team-leading fifth receiving touchdown of the season to put the Eagles ahead 7-0. On the ensuing drive for AIC, they would march down the field in the same fashion with an 11-play drive going 67 yards to tie it up at seven after an eight-yard run from junior running back Sidiki Kone.
 
Junior quarterback Lukas Kasko would give the Yellow Jackets their first lead of the day with a four-yard touchdown pass to sophomore tight end Anthony Desalvo, as part of a 12-for-15 first half with 95 passing yards and that touchdown. Doing work on the ground was Kone who had 116 first half rushing yards and two touchdowns with the second being a 62-yard run after freshman kicker Aden Caine hit from 35 yards to make it a 14-10 ballgame. Heading into the locker room, it would be the Yellow Jackets with the 20-10 lead and primed to receive the ball in the second half.
 
A defensive stop for the Eagles to start the third would give them the ball back and they would march down to the AIC 22-yard line before being stopped and forced to kick a 40-yard field which would be missed by Caine, keeping the AIC lead at 10 points. Making the most of their opportunity, the Yellow Jackets would drive the other way for 78 yards capped off by a Sidiki one-yard run, taking a three-possession lead, 26-10.
 
Around another missed field goal for Caine, this time from 23 yards out, AIC would add to their lead some more as Kasko hit junior wide receiver Dahvey Hicks with the 58-yard touchdown pass before converting the two-point conversion, making it 34-10 in the early part of the fourth quarter. A Burkett injury on an eight-yard scramble brought sophomore quarterback Malakai Taylor into the game for the Eagles, who converted a fourth down play and led Post back to the end zone with 10:55 left on Tracey's 13-yard touchdown catch, cutting their deficit to 17 points, 34-17.
 
Milking the clock down as much as they could, the Yellow Jackets would spend 16 plays and over 9 ½ minutes to cap off their high offensive second half with a 13-yard touchdown run from graduate running back Seba Nekhat as AIC handed Post their second straight loss, 41-17, at Ronald J. Abdow Field.

BY THE NUMBERS
  • In his lone drive replacing Simon Burkett, Malakai Taylor went 4-for-5 in the air with 51 passing yards and his second touchdown pass of the season
  • The AIC running game put up 297 total yards of offense with Seba Nekhet finishing with 154 yards and one touchdown while Sidiki Kone had 143 yards and three touchdowns
  • With his two touchdown grabs, Josh Tracey now has six receiving touchdowns to lead the team and now has a program record 13 touchdown catches over the first two seasons – Tracey finished with 111 receiving yards on seven catches
  • As a team, Post University generated 350 total yards of offense, their most so far this season

WHO'S NEXT
Post University has a bye week next week before closing their 2023 campaign with a road matchup against Division I Wagner College on November 18th at 12:00 PM. This will be the first time in program history in which the Eagles will face a Division I institution for football.
 
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