WORCESTER, Mass. — The No. 5/6 Holy Cross football team held off Bryant to remain undefeated, winning 36-29 in nonconference action on Saturday, Nov. 12 at Fitton Field. 

The Crusaders (10-0) jumped out to a 22-0 lead through two quarters, with 268 yards of offense in the opening half, while holding the Bulldogs (3-7) to just 48 yards. However, Bryant surged in the second half, out-scoring the Crusaders 29-14 across the final two quarters. 

Holy Cross finished with 470 yards of offense, including 326 rushing yards – their fourth game in the last five with over 300 rushing yards – while also holding Bryant to just 56 rushing yards. 

Senior kicker Derek Ng broke his own record for the longest field goal in Holy Cross history, connecting on a 52-yarder with 3:48 to go in the second quarter. 

Senior running back Peter Oliver rushed for a season-high 140 yards and scored two touchdowns. Sophomore running back Jordan Fuller finished with 85 yards on the ground. Junior quarterback Matthew Sluka rushed for 72 yards while also throwing for 144 yards and a pair of touchdowns. 

Defensively, senior cornerback Devin Haskins and senior safety Walter Reynolds each had an interception; Reynolds also recovered a fumble and had a 32-yard return, while also breaking up three passes. 

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

• Sluka completed a 15-yard pass to junior Phoenix Dickson to put the Crusaders on the board with 9:51 to go in the first. 
• A bad snap by Bryant on a punt attempt flew out of the end zone and led to a safety, giving Holy Cross a 9-0 lead with 6:43 remaining in the first. 
• Reynolds recovered a fumble and returned it 42 yards to the Bryant five-yard line; Ng connected on a field goal with 26 seconds left in the first to extend the lead to 12-0. 
• Ng hit a 52-yard field goal with 3:48 left in the first half, making it a 15-0 game. 
• Sluka's 17-yard pass to sophomore receiver Justin Shorter resulted in a touchdown for Holy Cross with 40 seconds left in the half. 
• Bryant got on the board with 12:02 left in the third quarter when quarterback Zevi Ekhaus connected with Jihad Edmond; the Bulldogs could not get the two-point conversion, however, keeping the score at 22-6.
• The Bulldogs scored again with 7:11 remaining in the third, but the two-point conversion failed again, making it a 22-12 contest. 
• Oliver muscled his way to a 34-yard touchdown to extend the Holy Cross lead to 29-12 with 4:24 remaining in the third. 
• Bryant scored in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter to cut within 29-19. 
• Oliver secured a 39-yard touchdown run with 9:29 left, building the Holy Cross advantage back to 17 points. 
• The Bulldogs immediately responded with a touchdown with 8:27 to go. Reynolds had a pick in the end zone with 5:49 to go to prevent a score on that late Bulldogs drive, but Bryant still hit a 37-yard field goal with 3:36 left to make it a one-score game.
• The Crusaders were able to run out the clock in the final three-and-a-half minutes and preserve the victory.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE: 

• Dickson's touchdown reception was the first of his career.
• Ng now owns the four longest field goals in program history; he had hit field goals from 51 yards, 50 yards and 49 yards prior to Saturday's 52-yarder.

UP NEXT: 

• Holy Cross rounds out its regular season with a trip to Georgetown on Saturday, Nov. 19. 
• Kickoff for the Patriot League matchup is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. in Washington, D.C. 

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