NEWTON, Mass. - The Gallaudet University football team lost its Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) debut, 23-6, against Mount Ida College before a crowd of 700 on a breezy Saturday afternoon in Newton, Mass.

The Bison (1-2, 0-1 ECFC) scored early in the fourth quarter on a five-yard run by sophomore running back Jacob Schlotthauer (Oshkosh, Wis.) to cut the Mustang lead to eight, 14-6. Gallaudet's point after attempt kicked by senior Justin Wilson (Phoenix, Ariz.) was blocked and picked up by Mt. Ida freshman Eli Shuler who  raced the other direction. Shuler made a lateral to senior Michael Epps near midfield as Epps galloped into the end zone for two points.

Gallaudet's defense went to work on the next Mustang possession that began near midfield. GU forced a three-and-out series, as Mount Ida had to punt the ball back to the Bison. Gallaudet started the drive on its own 16-yard line with 11:32 left in the game and down 10 points .

Schlotthauer broke loose on third down and three and rumbled 46 yards to the Mustang 28-yard line. He finished the day with two carries for 51 yards and a touchdown. Two plays later, GU senior quarterback Jimmy Gardner (St. Augustine, Fla.) got intercepted on his seventh throw of the game. Gardner finished the day 3-for-9 for 45 yards, one interception and was sacked twice. The two sacks were the first GU had surrendered all season.

Mount Ida (1-2, 1-0 ECFC) then mounted a 10-play, 85-yard drive that used up nearly six minutes of the game clock. The Mustangs closed out the long drive with a 39-yard touchdown run by Johrone Bunch (27 carries, 137 yards) to give Mount Ida the 23-6 advantage with 2:24 left.

The final Gallaudet drive saw two incomplete Gardner passes and a Gardner rush that lost three yards before Wilson punted the ball back to the Mustangs, who ran the final minute of the game out. Gardner ran the ball 19 times for minus 10 yards.

Sophomore running back Michael Gimeli (Deerpark, N.Y.) led all Bison with 18 carries for 69 yards while junior Cole Johnson (Edina, Minn.) carried the ball eight times for 49 yards. Gallaudet had a season-low 156 yards rushing on 51 carries against the Mustangs.

The two teams played a scoreless first quarter before Mount Ida found the end zone early in the second quarter.

Gallaudet's defense came up with a strong stand on fourth down and two yards against the Mustangs. GU senior linebacker Calvin Doudt (Medina, Ohio) dropped Bunch for a loss of six yards to turn the ball over to the Bison with 45 seconds left in the first quarter.

GU started its fourth drive of the game on its own 34-yard line. The Bison fumbled, the second time in the game, and lost the ball to the Mustangs at the 33-yard line.

On the ensuing possession, Mustang quarterback Mike Cloutier (13-for-19, 154 yards, two touchdowns, two interceptions) found Kyle Watkins (three receptions, 47 yards) for a 31-yard gain before Gallaudet defensive back Jared Vollmar (Delavan, Wis.) forced a fumble at the two-yard line. The ball ended up in the end zone where Mount Ida's Sean Simmons pounced on the ball to give the Mustangs the touchdown. The 7-0 score held up for the remainder of the first half as the two teams went into halftime.

Mount Ida scored its second touchdown on the first possession of the third quarter. The Mustangs put together a five-play, 57-yard drive that featured five straight passes and ended with a Cloutier 18-yard touchdown pass to Paul Shaughnessy.

Senior Joshua Doudt (Medina, Ohio) led the Bison with 10 tackles while Calvin made eight tackles and one interception. The other GU interception came from linebacker Tom Pangia (Hammonton, N.J.)

This was the first ECFC game in conference history since the inception of the new NCAA Division III single-sport football conference that formed in the spring of 2009.  The conference, named after the geographic location of the institutions, consists of Anna Maria College (Worcester, Mass.), Becker College (Leicester, Mass.), Castleton State College (Castleton, Vt.), Gallaudet University (Washington, D.C.), Husson University (Bangor, Maine), Maritime College State University of New York (Throggs Neck, N.Y.), Mount Ida College (Newton, Mass.), and Norwich University (Northfield, Vt.).

Gallaudet remains on the road next week to close out a three-game road trip. The Bison will head to Vermont to face first-year program Castleton State College (1-1, 0-0 ECFC) in a conference match-up that begins at Noon.