By Chris Estrada

With portions of Parsons Field submerged in water, offense was at a premium for Saturday’s game between the Northeastern football team and No. 4 Massachusetts.

Unfortunately for the Huskies, UMass made just enough of a splash to leave their hopes all wet, snapping NU’s two-game winning streak.

While the game turned into a showcase for both teams’ tailbacks – Northeastern junior Maurice Murray (34 carries, 134 yards) and UMass senior Steve Baylark (33 carries, 152 yards) – it was the Minutemen’s third-string rusher, Tim Washington, who made the only score with a touchdown in the second quarter. The UMass defense held on and ended Northeastern’s last chance with an interception late in the fourth quarter to escape soggy Brookline with a 7-0 win.

Northeastern got the ball back with 2:01 left in the fourth quarter, but was stopped when sophomore quarterback John Sperrazza’s throw was picked off by UMass cornerback James Ihedigbo. It was one of several missed Husky opportunities in the final frame which included a failed fourth down conversion with 12:08 left and a narrowly missed double pass from Sperrazza to sophomore receiver Chris Plum to senior tight end Kendrick Ballantyne on their next-to-last drive.

“After making the first fourth down in the fourth quarter, I felt like the next one was a probability as well,” said head coach Rocky Hager. “You gotta give [UMass] credit. They made a nice move to move their defensive front and get into position where it was shut off. Normally, we would look into the possibility of audible in that kind of situation, but we didn’t get that done and that falls into my lap as a coach to make sure we get those types of communications taken care of.”

“The double pass, I thought that would put a spark in things and that was pretty close,” Hager said. “It was just one of those things that the [UMass] backside corner made a heck of a play.