EWING, NJ - The La Salle football team (2-6) had another late-game rally fall short, as the College of New Jersey (3-4) held on to win by a 21-16 margin. The Explorers had the ball with 29 seconds left on the clock but were unable to find the end zone.

 

Trailing 21-10 with less than five minutes to play in regulation, the Explorers rattled off a nine-play, 76-yard drive that ended with a 14-yard touchdown reception by John Zabel (Ellicot City, MD/Mt. Hebron). After a failed two-point conversion, La Salle attempted an onside kick that was recovered by TCNJ.

 

The Lions opened the scoring in the first quarter when quarterback Jeff Struble's one-yard rush gave them a 7-0 lead. La Salle answered back in the second quarter with a Nick Scrivens (Potomac, MD/Winston Churchill) 27-yard field goal. The Explorers took the lead later in the quarter on a 34-yard touchdown pass from Michael Jump (Toms River, NJ/Toms River South) to Zabel. On the very next play, Strubel connected with Ryan Ross for a 67-yard score to give the Lions a 14-10 lead that they would take to halftime.

 

After a scoreless third quarter, TCNJ added an insurance score when Struble again found the end zone on his own.

 

Kevin Sullivan (Nanuet, NY/St. Joe's-Montvale) had another big day for the Explorers, totaling 134 yards. The junior rushed 10 times for 63 yards and caught nine passes for 57 yards. He also returned a punt for 14 yards.

 

Jump was 29-for-60 for 273 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Struble threw one touchdown and two interceptions. He was 12-25 for 186 yards.

 

Ross caught five passes for 116 yards and a touchdown. Zabel led the Explorers with 102 yards and two touchdowns on nine receptions.

 

La Salle racked up a total of 357 yards compared to the Lions' 311 yards.

 

The Explorers will host Kean on Oct. 29 at 1:00 p.m. at McCarthy Stadium for homecoming.