Box Score Lafayette Hill, Pa. - (10/4/2015) – Fifteen days after unveiling a new era of Chestnut Hill College athletics, the sprint football team was back on the field this afternoon for a home date with Mansfield University. Though the defense did its part, accounting for their only touchdown of the day and forcing four turnovers, the Griffins were unable to overcome six giveaways of their own and a dedicated rushing attack that allowed the Mountaineers to leave Plymouth Whitemarsh High School Football Stadium with a 22-6 victory.
 
Mansfield University (1-2) set the tone early, pouncing on a fumble by Chestnut Hill College (1-1) freshman quarterback Reginald Robinson Jr. (Germantown, Md.) on the Griffins' first play from scrimmage. After an offside penalty on the home side, four carries by Mountaineers freshman running back Aren Harris (Holland, Ohio) yielded the game's first score and a 6-0 lead for the visitors.
 
Chestnut Hill College drove to the Mansfield 35 on its ensuing possession, but the Mountaineers came up with an interception in the red zone and promptly traversed 59 yards in 12 plays, setting up a 24-yard field goal and a 9-0 spread with 2:11 to play in the opening frame.
 
The teams traded punts until the Griffins got a big break just before halftime. Set up at the Chestnut Hill College 10, Harris carried around left end and stretched for the pylon, but fumbled out of the end zone to keep the game at a manageable nine-point margin heading into the halftime break.
 
Unfortunately, the Mountaineers took the air right out of the Griffin sails after the intermission. Junior defensive back Jonathan Badman (Watsontown, Pa.) corralled an interception at the Chestnut Hill College 7-yard line, and Harris scored three plays later to provide a 15-0 cushion before a second missed extra point. The Scarlet and Gold forced a turnover on downs, but a quick three-and-out and a short punt put Mansfield University in business at the Griffins' 36. After a first-down completion on 4^th-and-9, freshman running back Hunter Brown (Mercersburg, Pa.) barreled in from six yards out to make it 22-0 with 6:27 remaining in the third.
 
Chestnut Hill College finally dented the scoreboard on the strength of its defense, when freshman Aubrey Jernigan II (Seaford, Del.) stripped Harris and classmate Alexander Rivera III (Jamesburg, N.J.) scooped up the loose ball and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown, 22-6 (2:05). Rivera made another big play on the first play of the fourth quarter, intercepting a pass by Mansfield University junior quarterback Austin Bennett (Beavertown, Pa.) at the Griffins' 2-yard line.
 
The defense kept the Griffins alive, and the home side gave a glimmer of hope with a drive down to the Mountaineers' 26. But Mansfield University came up with a pick to negate the scoring opportunity, and the visitors chewed up over five minutes (5:15) of clock on their next possession to leave Chestnut Hill College just 1:37 with which to work. Four straight incomplete passes officially put the contest to bed.
 
Harris rushed 44 times for 153 yards for Mansfield University, which finished with 184 yards on the ground for the afternoon. Bennett completed 12 of his 22 passes for 118 yards. Badman recorded two interceptions, while senior linebacker Spencer Underdown (Loyalsock Township, Pa.) and sophomore defensive back Kyle Post (Sayre, Pa.) also picked off Griffin passes.
 
Chestnut Hill College was held to just 137 yards of total offense, and the Griffins completed only eight of their 30 pass attempts.
 
Freshman Jonathan Baldwin (Charlotte, N.C.) was a spark plug on defense, racking up a game-high 11 tackles, including 1.5 for loss. Classmate Brian Layden (Springfield, Pa.) finished with 10 tackles and a fumble recovery, and fellow rookie Raevon Floyd-Bennett (Union City, N.J.) collected two tackles for loss and a pair of pass breakups. Sophomore Kadeem Pankey (Easton, Pa.) registered seven tackles (one for loss) and broke up a pass.  
 
Griffins sophomore Scott Ashton (Melbourne, Australia) dropped two punts inside the Mansfield 20, including a booming 56-yard kick that backed the Mountaineers back to their own 2 in the first quarter.
 
Chestnut Hill College hits the road for the first time on Saturday, October 10, for an 11:30 a.m. tilt with Post University.