SPRINGFIELD, Mass. â€" Senior running back Mike Laroche (Berlin, CT) ran for a career high 203 yards on 34 carries and scored two touchdowns to lead Western New England College to a 24-14 victory over MIT in a New England Football Conference (NEFC) Boyd Division contest.
The win gave the Golden Bears a 3-2 record (2-1 NEFC Boyd) that surpasses last year's total of two victories.
WNEC took a 10-0 half-time lead by scoring twice in the second quarter on a 27-yard field goal by senior Loren Estabrook (Sharon, NH) at 13:28 and a 68-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Jon Tallerico (Port Chester, NY) to freshman wide receiver Kevin Miculcy (Greenwich, CT) at the 2:01 mark.
Laroche then scored on runs of 22 and 10 yards to give the Golden Bears a 24-0 lead with 6:38 left in the third quarter. He now has 2,075 career yards that ranks fourth on the school's all-time rushing list.
MIT (2-3, 0-2) mounted a comeback attempt behind senior quarterback Phil Deutsch (Dobbs Ferry, NY) who returned in the third quarter after leaving the game in the opening period with an injury.
Deutsch scored on a two-yard run to cap a seven-play, 82-yard drive with 3:59 remaining in the quarter. He then tossed the two-point conversion pass to senior tight end Cody Patrick (Austin, TX) that made it 24-8. Deutsch led MIT on an eight-play, 73-yard drive that ended with his six-yard run with 2:12 left in the game. The two-point rushing conversion attempt failed.
WNEC finished with a season high 452 yards helped by Tallerico who was 8-of-27 passing for 153 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore free safety Jim Kantany (East Longmeadow, MA) had his first collegiate interceptions while junior cornerback Jay Rooney (El Segundo, CA) had his first interceptions of the season.
Deutsch was 7-of-16 passing for 100 yards and one interception, and with 43 yards rushing on 10 carries, as the Engineers racked up 251 yards. Freshman running back Muamba Muanankese (Silver Springs, MD) rushed for 85 yards on 20 carries while senior wide receiver Warren Chia (Edison, NJ) had three receptions for 66 yards.
