DURHAM – Junior running back Dylan Laube (Westhampton, N.Y.) finished with a school-record 424 all-purpose yards and four touchdowns to lead the No. 15/16 University of New Hampshire football team to Saturday afternoon’s 52-42 victory against No. 16/13 Fordham University in an NCAA first round game at Wildcat Stadium. 

Laube (pictured above) rushed 29 times for 157 yards and three TDs, caught four passes for 127 yards and a touchdown, had five kickoff returns for 119 yards and three punt returns for 21 yards. The three rushing touchdowns matched a personal best, with the four total TDs and 127 receiving yards both marking career highs. 

UNH, an NCAA at-large team as co-champion of the CAA, improved to 9-3 overall to advance to the NCAA second round at eighth-seeded College of the Holy Cross next Saturday at 12 p.m. Former Nashua North standout Curtis Harris-Lopez is a key in the Crusaders’ defensive secondary as a sophomore.

Adding to the local flavo, Merrimack’s Joe Eichman had a key fumble recovery on Fordham’s opening drive. The Rams, which received an at-large bid out of the Patriot League, end the season at 9-3. 

Sophomore Max Brosmer (Roswell, Ga.) completed 18 of 34 passes for a career-high 348 yards and three TDs – 87 yards to Laube, seven yards to Sean Coyne (Portsmouth, R.I.) and 65 yards to Heron Maurisseau (Bellport, N.Y.). 

Joey Corcoran (Montreal, Quebec) had a team-leading five catches for 47 yards. Coyne finished with three catches for 52 yards. 

Josiah Silver (Hampton, Va.) led UNH’s defense with seven tackles, including two stops behind the line of scrimmage, and a forced fumble. Eichman, Niko Kvietkus (Southington, Conn.) and Bedford’s Ryan Toscano followed with five tackles apiece. Eichman recorded one of UNH’s three takeaways with a fumble recovery; Randall Harris and Brendan Tighe (Lowell, Mass.) both recorded an interception. 

Fordham’s Tim DeMorat threw for 330 yards, two touchdowns and two INTs. Fotis Kokosioulis was the top target with 14 catches for 132 yards. MJ Wright pulled in five catches for 95 yards and a touchdown. 

The Rams’ defense was led by James Conway (13 tackles), Stephen Williams II (12), B.J. Ferguson (10) and Ryan Greenhagen (10). Williams II made two tackles for loss and Conway had 1.5. 

Fordham marched to the UNH 10 on the opening possession of the game, but then Silver stripped Sneed of the ball and Eichman recovered the fumble to stop the drive. 

UNH needed only two plays to take a 7-0 lead as Brosmer found Laube in the right flat and he raced down the sideline for the score at 10:39. 

After the defense held the Rams to a 3-and-out, UNH’s offense marched 91 yards on 12 plays, capped by a seven-yard pass from Brosmer to Coyne at the front-left pylon, to extend the advantage to 14-0 at 4:37.

UNH led 28-21 at the half, and when up 35-28 late in the third quarter, Laube returned a kickoff 36 yards to set up 1st-and-10 at the UNH 48, and six plays later he scored his third TD of the game (second rushing) on a 12-yard run up the middle to extend the advantage to 42-28 entering the final quarter.

Fordham closed to within a TD again, 42-35, but UNH’s Nick Mazzie who had a 40-yard field goal attempt blocked in the second quarter, made a career-long 43-yard field goal at 10:50 to advance the score to 45-35.

Laube scored on an 18-yard run to extend the advantage to 52-35 at 4:10. He had five rushes for 45 yards on the 6-play, 46-yard drive.

UNH finished with season highs in both passing yards (330) and total offense (664), as well as points.

(Photo above courtesy of Gil Talbot/UNH Athletics)

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