WORCESTER, Mass. — The Holy Cross football team fell just short in a back-and-forth Family Weekend battle, as No. 19 Yale pulled away late for a 38-28 win on Saturday, Sept. 19.
Senior linebacker
Adam Due had a superb effort on defense, totaling a career-best 17 tackles, a 10-yard sack and three quarterback hurries.
Sophomore receiver
Lincoln Fisher scored a pair of touchdowns and totaled 59 yards on the day. Sophomore
Joseph Williams had a career-best 120 rushing yards on 16 carries, while also recording a 38-yard kick return.
Senior safety
Garrett Baldwin finished the day with nine tackles. Sophomore
Tyler Georgs had a 10-yard sack in addition to three solo tackles.
Yale quarterback Dante Reno completed 30 of his 43 pass attempts for five touchdowns and 454 total yards in the air, winning the Dr. Edward N. Anderson Award, which is presented annually to the outstanding player in the Family Weekend game by the Holy Cross Club of Greater Worcester.
Jaxton Santiago scored two touchdowns and totaled 234 receiving yards on the day, while Lucius Anderson also caught two touchdowns with 155 yards.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Santiago caught a 75-yard touchdown pass from Reno to open the scoring with 10:07 left in the first.
- Williams scampered for a 38-yard kickoff return to give the Crusaders prime field position on the next drive. The drive commenced with a 13-yard carry by Williams and a 14-yard catch by junior receiver Ty Curran to move the ball down the field, and junior quarterback David Lynch eventually knotted the score at 7-7 with a one-yard keeper with 5:52 left in the opening quarter.
- The score remained deadlocked at 7-7 through the remainder of the half, which featured a highlight-reel sack by Due.
- The third quarter opened with a 22-yard touchdown completion from Reno to Lucius Anderson, giving the Bulldogs a 14-7 edge with 13:14 to go in the frame.
- On the ensuing drive, a 43-yard run by Williams and a seven-yard pickup by junior running back Jake Croce on fourth down helped set up a scoring opportunity — and Lynch connected with Croce on a lateral pass, who then passed to junior tight end Mason McSweeney for a nine-yard touchdown.
- Yale responded with a 26-yard touchdown to take a 21-14 lead with 4:36 left in the third.
- After a three-and-out, Fisher recovered a muffed punt to secure the ball for the Crusaders at the Yale 44-yard line. In a drive that extended into the start of the fourth quarter, Fisher caught a 31-yard pass from Lynch on fourth down to knot up the score at 21-21 just nine seconds into the final frame.
- The Crusader defense stepped up and forced a turnover on downs during the next drive. Less than three minutes after their previous touchdown, Fisher and Lynch connected again, with Fisher catching a 28-yard pass to give Holy Cross a 28-21 lead — their first advantage of the day — with 11:52 to go.
- The Bulldogs responded with a touchdown on their next drive to make it 28-28, and the Yale defense forced back-to-back three-and-outs to keep the Crusaders off the board. A 28-yard touchdown pass from Reno gave the Bulldogs a 35-28 lead with 3:42 left, and after Yale intercepted a pass by Lynch, a field goal with 1:41 left put the game out of reach.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE:
- Due's 17 tackles were a career high and the most by a Crusader since the 2024 season.
- Junior Ethan Moss' 63-yard punt early in the fourth quarter tied for the second-longest of his career.
- Williams had the first 100-yard rushing game by a Holy Cross player this season.
- Fisher recorded the first multi-touchdown game for a Crusader this year.
UP NEXT:
- The Crusaders resume Patriot League action with a road trip to Lafayette on Saturday, Sept. 26.
- Kickoff is set for 12:30 p.m. in Easton, Pa.
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