Box Score Box Score

MILTON, Mass. - Junior quarterback Bryce Brown (Guilford, CT) passed for 178 yards and one touchdown, and ran for 88 yards and another score, as Western New England College shocked Curry 27-23 Saturday (Oct. 9) to remain unbeaten in the New England Football Conference (NEFC) Boyd Division.

Sophomore defensive end James Georges (Stamford, CT) contributed to the win by forcing and recovering a fumble at the WNEC 1 with 48 seconds left in the game as the Golden Bears tied a school record with their fifth consecutive win.
 
Coach Keith Emery's squad is now 5-1 overall and tied for first in the division with both Endicott and Plymouth State at 3-0. The Colonels drop to 3-3 and 1-2 in the division.

This was only the ninth victory in 27 meetings for WNEC over Curry, and the first win since 2000 (42-35). It also avenged a 41-0 shutout loss last year in Springfield.

It was a back and forth game that featured a well-executed balanced offensive attack of the Golden Bears who finished with 370 yards, including 192 rushing against the league's second best rushing defense and top scoring defense.

Senior Jake Field (Long Valley, NJ) played a big part in the win kicking a 24-yard field goal that gave the Blue and Gold a 3-0 lead at 6:59 of the opening period. He also booted a 35-yard field goal for the game's final points with 8:42 left in the fourth quarter.

Curry went ahead 7-3 when senior quarterback Harold Rose (Bourne, MA) tossed a 15-yard scoring pass to senior running back Dennis Void (Brookhaven, PA) at the 3:53 mark of the opening stanza. It was the only completion of the game for Rose who went 1-for-8 with an interception.

WNEC scored twice on a 5-yard run by Brown and 20-yard scamper by sophomore running back Mike Graham (Norwalk, CT) for a 17-7 advantage with 3:28 left before halftime. The Colonels answered with a 10-play, 61-yard scoring drive capped by a nine-yard scoring pass from junior quarterback Mark Gilson (Mansfield, MA) to sophomore receiver Robert Bambini (Westwood, MA) just 38 seconds before intermission.

Curry (3-3, 1-2 Boyd) took its largest lead a 23-17 after scoring nine points in 13 seconds early in the third quarter.

Freshman linebacker Jonas Duffrene (Waltham, MA) blocked a punt by freshman Michael Bastin (Topsham, ME) 1:37 into the second half and freshman defensive back Leon Barns (Boston, MA) then returned the following kickoff 70 yards for a touchdown.

The Golden Bears rallied and went ahead by a point when Brown (12-for-16, no interceptions) threw a five-yard scoring pass to junior receiver Kenny Muhlack (Groton, CT) on fourth-and-two with six seconds left in the period to highlight a 15-play, 68-yard drive. Muhlack finished with five catches for 93 yards, including a 67-yarder that helped set-up Field's first field goal.

Field's second three-pointer gave WNEC a four-point lead in the fourth quarter and WNEC's defense again came through down the stretch with another stop in the red zone.

After Field missed a 34-yard field goal, Curry took over on its own 20 and Gilson drove the Colonels to the WNEC six with 58 seconds left. Following a timeout, Void ran five yards before Georges forced a fumble and made the recovery at the one with 48 seconds left. The Golden Bears were then able to run out the clock.

Last week Georges also made a key defensive play with a sack on the last play of the game to help preserve a 10-6 win over Salve Regina.

Senior linebackers Justin Bailey (Northborough, MA) and Dylan Chandler (Durham, ME) had five tackles for the Golden Bears. Senior linebacker Dave McCarten (Little Compton, RI) intercepted a pass while junior linebacker Mark Devlin (Guilford, CT) had a fumble recovery.

Curry finished with 247 yards as Gilson went 10-for-17 passing for 97 yards and a TD. Void had a team high 80 yards rushing on 15 attempts. Bambini finished with six receptions for 70 yards. Senior linebacker Kevin McCarthy (Foxboro, MA) and senior defensive back Bobby Driscoll (Milton, MA) each had eight tackles.