WALTHAM, Mass. – Freshman wide receiver Jeff Hill (Mansfield/Mansfield HS) caught two Hail Mary passes from grad student Bryant Johnson (Hopedale/Milford HS) in the final 30 seconds, but it wasn't quite enough as Bentley University fell to Southern Connecticut State University in a wild Northeast-10 Conference football game before a Homecoming crowd of more than 4,000 Saturday afternoon at Bentley.

Bentley, which gave up 24 unanswered points after taking a 17-7 lead into the halftime break, drew within one TD when Hill pulled down a 37-yarder from Johnson, finishing an eight-play, 70-yard drive that took exactly 100 seconds.  The extra point try by normally sure-footed Will Lockwood (Menlo Park, Calif./Sacred Heart Prep) hit the upright, leaving the Falcons down eight.

The ensuring onside kick by senior Mike Brownett (Branchburg, N.J./Immaculata HS) bounced off a Southern player and was recovered by Bentley junior Sean Cross (Duxbury/Duxbury HS). Johnson quickly moved the Falcons from their own 38 to the Owls' 39 before throwing into the end zone again.  Hill again came down out of a crowd with the ball and all of a sudden it was a 31-29 game with 4.7 seconds left.

The two-point pass from Johnson to junior Mike Sumrell (Dorchester/Belmont HS) was successfully defended by the Owls, keeping the visitors up two and setting the stage for another onside kick.  It took the officials several minutes to uncover the pile and determine that Southern had the ball, ending the Falcons' amazing comeback bid.

Until that final minute, it was a tale of two halves with Bentley dominating the first and Southern doing the same in the second, behind senior Rashaad Slowley (Mount Vernon, N.Y.). The number two scorer in Division II reached the end zone three times (twice rushing, once threw the air) to boost his season TD total to 22.

Bentley scored 10 unanswered points in an opening quarter in which it had the ball for 10:21. Sumrell capped the game's opening drive with a four-yard run, and Lockwood drilled a 30-yard field goal with 2:52 on the first-quarter clock.

After Slowley got his team on the board with a one-yard run midway through the first half, Bentley ate up nearly five minutes of clock time before being faced with a fourth and five from the Southern 32.  The Falcons lined up for what would have been a 49-yard field goal, but Cross, the holder, took the ball and connected with senior Matt Welch (Woburn/Woburn HS). The 240-pound defensive end and former fullback took it down the left sideline for the touchdown, giving Bentley a 10-point lead.

On the opening possession of the second half, Slowley caught a 28-yard pass from senior Kevin Lynch (Medfield HS) and took it in for the score, reducing Bentley's lead to three. It stayed that way until Lynch went deep to junior Willie Epps (Norwalk, Conn.) early in the fourth. That went for a 46-yard score, with the Owls' first fourth-quarter TD against the Falcons since 2006 producing a 21-17 lead.

A two-yard run by Slowley with 9:39 left and a field goal from senior Chris Hazelton (Bristol, Conn.) with 2:17 on the clock pushed the Owl advantage to 14 points against a Bentley offense that had struggled throughout the second half.

Johnson, who had been questionable for the game after an injury that knocked him from last week's game, finished 32 of 47 for 275 yards, eclipsing 7,000 yards in career total offense in the process. Most of those completions went to grad student Wade Critides (Wayland/Wayland HS), who caught 14 for 102 yards.  Ironically, Hill's two touchdown catches were his only receptions of the afternoon. Senior Bobby Tarr (Byfield/Bishop Fenwick HS) led the Bentley ground game with 59 yards on 12 carries.

Slowley lugged the ball 30 times for 102 yards, pushing him over 1,000 for the season, and also had four catches for 73 yards. Lynch was 18 of 28 for 244 yards, and like Johnson, had one picked off.

Bentley outgained the visiting Owls on the day, 426-343, and had a 24-17 edge in first downs.  Southern came alive offensively in the second half after being limited to just 102 yards before intermission.

A trio of sophomore linebackers led Bentley in tackles, with Kyle Young (Ellicott City, Md./ Centennial HS) topping the list with 11. Blaine Hopwood (New Bedford/New Bedford HS) and Anthony Carter (Marlboro/Marlboro HS) followed with nine and eight, respectively.

Bentley will be on the road the next two weeks, beginning with a trip to conference-leading and nationally-ranked New Haven next Saturday.