Cambridge, MA --- WPI football couldn't overcome an early deficit, as MIT earned a 19-7 victory over WPI on Saturday afternoon at Steinbrenner Stadium. The loss set the Crimson and Gray to 2-6 overall and 1-4 in NEWMAC play, while the hosts improved to 4-3 and 2-3 in the league.
 
MIT jumped ahead on its opening drive, marching 67 yards in seven plays capped by a 16-yard touchdown pass from Shaunak Joshi (Tampa, FL) to Griffin Patterson (New York, NY). After forcing a pair of WPI punts, the Cambridge Engineers extended the lead midway through the second quarter when Dominic Hess (Damascus, MD) intercepted a pass and returned it 93 yards for a touchdown to make it 13-0.
 
WPI responded just before halftime with a key defensive play of its own. As MIT attempted to run out the clock, John Lavinio (Upper Saddle River, NJ) scooped up a fumble and returned it for a touchdown with two seconds left in the half. Nathan Napier (Natick, MA) added the extra point to bring the Crimson and Gray within 13-7 at the break.
 
Both defenses controlled play through the third quarter before MIT sealed the game with a 10-play, 67-yard drive in the fourth. Joshi connected with Michael Dennison (Beaufort, SC) on a five-yard scoring pass for the final margin.
 
Jack Schuck (Bangor, ME) led WPI's offense with 149 passing yards on 16 completions. Dante Atwood (Newton, MA) caught eight passes for 59 yards, Garrett Ranieri (Templeton, MA) added five grabs for 58, and Ty Csencsits (Hellertown, MA) chipped in three receptions for 30 yards. On the ground, Tom McGraw (Portsmouth, RI) ran for 39 yards on 12 carries.
 
Defensively, Carter Learned (Reading, MA) paced the Crimson and Gray with a game-high 11 tackles, followed by Jake Robertson (Grafton, MA) with eight, including an interception. Nikolas Hemmings (West Haven, CT) recorded a sack for an 11-yard loss, while Carson Palma (Londonderry, NH) added two quarterback hurries.
 
Joshi completed 13-of-28 passes for 142 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception to lead MIT. Andrew Kulhan (Scottsdale, AZ) powered the ground game with 120 rushing yards on 26 carries, highlighted by a 41-yard burst, while Ezekiel Dube-Garrett (Fort Myers, FL) hauled in four receptions for 47 yards. Wyatt Alford (Brookhaven, GA), Chase Williams (Missoula, MT), and Stephen Schulze (Westminster, MD) each tallied 10 tackles for the home Engineers, with Hess' interception return proving to be the difference.
 
Up next, WPI will travel to Merchant Marine next Saturday for a noon kickoff. MIT heads to NY Maritime for its own league matchup at the same time.