Salve Regina University

NEWPORT, R.I. (October 3, 2026) - Salve Regina University football and Springfield College were tied 10-10 at halftime before Mike Mendicino (Pound Ridge, N.Y.) returned two interceptions for touchdowns (100, 14) and Will Aviles (Bethlehem, Pa.) matched him with one from end zone to end zone as the Pride (4-1, 2-0) defeated the Seahawks (4-1, 1-1), 36-23, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) competition on Toppa Field in Newport, Rhode Island, on Saturday afternoon.

Salve Regina out gained Springfield in total offense, 381 to 233 yards, but the Pride scored 21 points on the three picks returned for touchdowns and had two points on a safety after a botched snap on a punt attempt went through the Seahawk end zone.

After Ian Wernick (Plymouth, Mass.) opened the scoring in the first quarter on the first Pride possession with a season-long 40-yard field goal, Salve Regina marched 75 yards in 15 plays to take the lead with a Padraig Brown (Newington, Conn.) 12-yard touchdown pass to  Spencer Chapman (Needham, Mass.). For the junior wide receiver, it marked his 11th-consecutive game with at least one TD reception.

Springfield quarterback Drew Heenan (Londonderry, N.H.), who did not throw a pass in the first quarter, threw an incomplete on a 3rd-and-10 on the first play of the second quarter. The teams exchanged punts and Springfield had the ball on its own 39 for its second series of the second quarter. On 3rd-and-3, Colin Morley (Scituate, Mass.) stopped James Green (Gales Ferry, Conn.) for a one-yard loss and then a delay of game penalty pushed the Pride back five more yards and forced a punt. The Seahawks fumbled the punt and Springfield took over at the Salve Regina 20-yard line.

A false start flag backed Springfield to the Seahawk 25 and Salve Regina's defensive unit stopped four different Pride rushers to take over on downs.

Brown connected with Michael Fulton (Milton, Mass.) for a first-down pass play before the Seahawks punted to the Springfield side. On Heenan's second pass attempt of the game, he hit Caleb Hantho (Schoharie, N.Y.) for a 56-yard TD strike going away. The Seahawks tied the score 10-10 when Nathan DiRado (Carver, Mass.) made a 24-yard field goal to cap an 11-play, 64-yard drive just before the Two-Minute Timeout.

Both teams threw interceptions in the final minute of the first half. Brady Vale (Ellington, Conn.) picked off Brown at the Seahawk 48 with 54 seconds left. Gianluca Checchetto (Verona, N.J.) stopped a Pride scoring drive when he snatched a Heenan heave at the goal line with eight ticks to go. 

In the second half, Springfield survived a fumble at their own 19 recovered by Seahawk defensive end Scott Nico (Bayville, N.J.). After Brown gained a first down rushing seven yards to the marker, the Seahawks took a false start penalty and then called their second timeout of the series. On the next play, Mendicino got in the way and went all the way for the go-ahead score.

Salve Regina responded with the tying touchdown in three plays. A five-yard rush for Michael LaRusso (Congers, N.Y.), then an 11-yard catch for Chapman before Brown scrambled to find Robert Zdrojeski III (Glastonbury, Conn.) deep down the middle and the tight end carried the final dozen yards into the end zone.

A James Campbell (Oxford, Pa.) punt went 47 yards and out of bounds at the Seahawk 7-yard line near the end of the third quarter. LaRusso ran four yards before the quarter flipped to the fourth, and then Brown covered six on the ground for a first down at the 17. Brown's next pass was picked by Mendicino and returned 14 yards for another go-ahead score.

On 4th-and-8 from its own 25, Salve Regina snapped a punt attempt that sailed over DiRado's leaping hands and through the end zone for a safety.

Wernik added a 30-yard field goal to boost the two-score advantage to 29-17. Salve Regina got the ball at its own 30 with 8:16 to go, looking for two more scores. The Seahawks marched 65 yards in 11 plays, but on 1st-and-Goal at the Pride 5-yard line Aviles stepped in front of Brown's intended target on the goal line and raced the opposite way for another 100-yard interception return in the game for the visitors.

After the Two-Minute Timeout, Brown found Jake Brilliant (Marshfield, Mass.) for an 18-yard touchdown strike in the left corner but a two-point conversion attempt failed for the final score, 36-23.

Morley and Owen Nanartowich (Hudson, Mass.) both were in double-digit tackle totals (10) with seven solo for Nanartowich.

UP NEXT
Salve Regina has a bye week before visiting the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, New York, for a noon kickoff on Saturday, October 17, on FloCollege.