WALTHAM, Mass. – Graduate student Danny Guadagnoli (Framingham/Framingham HS) threw a pair of second-half touchdowns and the Falcon defense limited the Lakers to 150 yards and nine first downs as Bentley University gave head coach Bill Kavanaugh a 27-21 victory over Mercyhurst University in his first game at the helm in non-conference football Saturday afternoon at Bentley.

Bentley, down 14-10 at the break, ran off 21 unanswered points during the second half to take control and withstood a late challenge from Mercyhurst that was aided by a blocked punt.

The Falcons, who had deferred at the start of the contest, opened the second half with a nine-play, 64-yard drive that culminated with Guadagnoli connecting with sophomore Sean Myers (Foxborough/Roxbury Latin School) on a four-yard scoring pass. Myers used all of his six-foot-three frame to pull in his first collegiate reception and put the Falcons in front to stay, 17-14.

That scoring drive featured a 23-yard completion from Guadagnoli to junior Chris Calvanese (Norfolk/Xaverian Bros. HS) on a third-and-two play. Calvanese had his best game as a collegian, finishing with seven catches for 135 yards.

On the second play of the fourth quarter, Calvanese pulled in Guadagnoli's 40th career TD pass, this one a 27-yarder to the right side of the end zone. That finished a six-play, 86-yard drive that included a 39-yard completion to Myers on a third-and-one play.

Bentley was much more effective on third down conversions in the second half, succeeding on six of ten after a one-for-six opening half.

The Falcons extended the lead to 13, 27-14, when sophomore Michael Baron (Medfield/ Roxbury Latin School) put his second short field goal of the game through the uprights. The 22-yarder finished a 13-play drive that took nearly seven minutes off the clock.

Special teams kept Mercyhurst in the game throughout the afternoon. In the second quarter after Bentley grabbed a 10-7 lead, a lengthy kickoff return by Drew Robinson (New Castle, Pa.) gave the visitors the ball on the Bentley 24. Six plays later, sophomore QB Zach Emerick took it in from the six to put his team back in front. Robinson brought back three kickoffs a total of 135 yards.

In waning minutes of the fourth quarter, Laker senior linebacker Pat Behm (Chagrin Falls, Ohio) blocked a punt and recovered it on the Falcon one. Emerick teamed up with junior fullback T.J. Latimer (Warren, Pa.) for a short scoring pass and all of a sudden the Bentley lead was down to six with 1:51 left.

The ensuing onside kick was recovered by Bentley and the Falcons were able to use up the rest of the clock to lock up the victory.

Bentley's first-half scoring was a 19-yard Baron field goal and a four-yard run by junior George Craan (Hyde Park/Concord-Carlisle HS).

Bentley finished with 403 yards of total offense with Guadagnoli completing 15 of 22 passes for 223 yards. The Falcons amassed 180 net rushing yards with Craan gaining 84 on 24 carries and senior Lorenzo Warren (Boston/Catholic Memorial HS) 67 on 17.

The Bentley defense allowed only 54 net second-half yards and contained two-time 1,000-yard rusher Brandon Brown-Dukes (Orlando, Fla.). He gained only 58 yards on 15 carries. Emerick, in his first start, was 14 of 24 for 106 yards, one TD and one interception. That was made in the second quarter by sophomore Sam McDonald (Norfolk/King Phillip Reg. HS) and was returned 30 yards to set up Craan's TD.

Fifth-year senior linebackers Blaine Hopwood (New Bedford/New Bedford HS) and Kyle Young (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial HS) paced the Falcons with eight tackles apiece, and sophomore LB Bryan Hardy (Barnstable/Barnstable HS) had seven stops and a sack.

Bentley will open its Northeast-10 schedule Friday night when it hosts Stonehill College at 7 pm.