Harrison’s McGillicuddy Stadium had easily the largest crowd ever in its brief history, however the home field advantage and loud atmosphere of Husky Nation wasn’t enough to deter the Garnets as Rye won 17-7.

The Rye rushing attack of Joe Simolacaj and Jake Meyerson took their time to really get started, but as the game progressed they proved to be too much for the Harrison defense to handle. On 34 carries the bruising fullback Simolacaj picked up 135 yards while Meyerson scampered for 103 yards on 16 carries.

Neither back found the end zone. Instead, Coach Dino Garr entrusted his freshman quarterback in the red zone. It worked out well as Andrew Livingston found senior tight end Dylan Lynch twice for the only Garnet touchdowns of the game.

“It wasn’t in our game plan to stay away from the run and pass down there,” said Lynch, “It’s just the way it worked out. The line did a great job and Andrew Livingston played great -- all the credit goes to him.”

The second Livingston-to-Lynch score came with over 8 minutes left in the game, and it was quickly followed by a Meyerson interception off of Harrison quarterback Vinnie Nicita Jr. Harrison had issues moving the ball all day against the Garnet defense as the Huskies only ran 16 second half plays to Rye’s 36.

To put the game out of reach, Meyerson lined up and kicked a field goal to give the Garnets a two score lead and the 17-7 victory at Harrison.

“I’ve played everywhere this year,” Meyerson said, “quarterback, running back, kicker, I’ll play wherever I need to in order to win.”

The only time Harrison’s offense controlled the game was when the Huskies went 65 yards in 10 plays, and sophomore running back Jake Marino scored a 19-yard touchdown off of a Nicita pitch to tie the game at 7. The drive showcased all of Harrison’s running backs as the Husky offensive line dominated Rye. That one drive showed how good Harrison could be when they play the way they are capable of, but mistakes and missed assignments doomed the home team from the very beginning.

Even though Harrison owns the series that dates back to the 1920s at 41-37-3, Rye has now rattled off nine straight wins against the Huskies, winning most of the games in recent years convincingly.

At 3-3 both Harrison and Rye will have a tough time making it into the playoffs, but if they each win next week then both teams should see bowl games. Harrison will be on the road against Horace Greeley while Rye will be at home against Lakeland.

Before the game Lynch and Harrison senior Charlie Drago received the Mello Award named for 1994 graduate of Rye High School Chris Mello who lost his life in the September 11^th terrorist attacks. Since 2002 the award has gone to a player on each team before the game who exemplify leadership, courage, and drive that Mello showed throughout his life.