SPRINGFIELD, Mass. â€" Sophomore running back Jordan Capitanio (Torrington, CT) rushed for a career high 262 yards on 35 carries and scored three touchdowns as Western New England College posted a 28-0 victory over Salve Regina University Saturday afternoon (Oct. 28) on Senior Day.

It was the second shutout in the row for the Golden Bears who improved their record to 5-3, which tied the school record for wins previously set in 1981 (the program’s first varsity season), 1989, 1998, and 2004. WNEC is now 3-3 in the New England Football Conference (NEFC) Boyd Division after capturing its third straight division contest.

Salve Regina won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Golden Bears started their opening drive in excellent field position after senior Justin Varga (Colonia, NJ) returned the kickoff 39 yards to the WNEC 46. Capitanio then carried the ball seven consecutive times capped by a two-yard scoring run just 2:48 into the game.

Capitanio, who entered the game with 387 yards rushing and seven touchdowns, added scoring runs of 38 and 46 yards on third-down plays on back-to-back possessions in the second quarter to give Western New England College a 21-0 half-time advantage. He had 190 yards on 22 attempts at intermission.

After a scoreless third period, the Golden Bears added their final touchdown when freshman quarterback Justin Walz (Groton, CT) (7-for-19, 61 yards) tossed a 24-yard score to junior wide receiver Kevin Miculcy (Greenwich, CT) at the 4:49 mark of the final quarter. Miculcy finished with five receptions for 61 yards.

Western New England College came into the contest leading the NEFC in passing (214.1 avg.), but used a rushing attack because of the windy conditions (that included some brief heavy showers) at Golden Bear Stadium. The result was a season high 341 yards on the ground on 52 attempts. Freshman running back Mike Bernstein (Washingtonville, NY) added a season best 51 yards on seven carries.

The Golden Bears’ defense had its best performance of the season holding the Seahawks (1-7, 0-6 Boyd) to only 133 yards (including 55 on the ground).

Freshman linebacker Jay Evans (Wallingford, CT) led the charge with 11 tackles while senior defensive back Jarod Johnson (Ticonderoga, NY), senior free safety Jim Kantany (East Longmeadow, MA), and junior rover Eli Gardner (New Milford, NJ) each contributed eight stops. Sophomore strong safety Lionel Houle (Granby, MA) had two-and-half of the Golden Bears four sacks along with four tackles.

Western New England College hasn't allowed a point in a little more than nine quarters (136 minutes, 12 seconds) dating back to the MIT game on October 14.

Salve Regina senior quarterback Rob Higle (Sleepy Hollow, NY) was 7-for-15 for just 60 yards. Junior running back Louy Marroquin (Hewlett, NY) had five catches for 11 yards while senior tight end Josh Marks (Portland, ME) had two catches for 34 yards.