Western New England University

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (September 12, 2026) – The Western New England football team fell in its 2026 home opener on Saturday afternoon at Golden Bear Stadium, seeing four interceptions doom the offense, while the Seahawks of Salve Regina University put up points in all four quarters to defeat the Golden Bears by a final score of 24-21. 

Records:

• Western New England: 0-2
• Salve Regina University: 2-0

How it Happened:

First Quarter:

• Salve Regina opened the scoring with a touchdown on its opening offensive possession of the game, capping off a seven-play, 72-yard drive, as Spencer Chapman hauled in a 25-yard touchdown pass from Stephen Paradiso, giving Salve Regina the opening 7-0 lead. 
• Western New England responded with an impressive 51-yard drive, but the drive would end at the Salve Regina 24-yard line after Corey Kilroy was picked off by Dylan DeAngelis, turning the ball back over to the Seahawks. 
• The Seahawks threatened again late in the quarter, but the WNE defense forced a punt after Austin Pszczolkowski recorded a six-yard sack of the Salve Regina quarterback, which forced a Salve punt, that went just 20 yards.
• WNE's Corey Kilroy was intercepted again on the Golden Bears' final possession of the quarter, with Salve Regina taking over at the WNE 22-yard line.

Second Quarter:

• Salve Regina quickly extended its lead when Ethan Lemos caught a 19-yard touchdown pass just 12 seconds in the quarter, putting the Seahawks ahead 14-0.
• WNE continued to move the ball effectively on the ground, with Matt LaMontagne, Marcus Crawford and Matthew McGuire helping the Golden Bears sustain a lengthy drive from their own 1-yard line. The Golden Bears converted a pair of fourth downs on the drive before reaching the Salve Regina 5-yard line, where Kilroy rushed five yards for a touchdown with 1:54 remaining in the half. A 17-yard pass to James Burg kept the drive alive, while Kilroy put WNE on the board, trailing 14-7. 
• WNE's defense then forced a Salve Regina punt to end the opening half, seeing the Seahawks leading by seven.

Third Quarter:

• Salve Regina opened the second half with a long, clock-consuming drive that moved from its own 30-yard line to the WNE 24-yard line before the Golden Bears defense came up with a fourth-down stop, seeing Nick Kolifrath make a key tackle on a completed pass from Paradiso to Spencer Chapman, but the fourth-down play would be blown up by the senior defender to keep the Seahawks at bay. 
• WNE was unable to capitalize on the turnover on downs, turning the ball over on downs at its own 40-yard line after a fourth-down rush came up short.
• The Seahawks took advantage of the field position, driving inside the WNE 15-yard line before Nathan DiRado connected on a 28-yard field goal with 3:20 remaining to extend the lead to 17-7.
• WNE's next possession ended with an interception, their fourth thrown interception of the afternoon. The Golden Bears defense stayed strong, quickly getting the offense back onto the field to end the quarter. 

Fourth Quarter:

• WNE opened the quarter with the momentum, completing a drive that began late in the third quarter. Marcus Crawford broke loose for a 30-yard run to the Salve Regina 21-yard line, and Matt LaMontagne finished the possession with a seven-yard touchdown run with 11 minutes to play in the quarter, seeing the Golden Bears get within three, trailing 17-14. 
• Salve Regina responded with a marathon 17-play, 88-yard drive that consumed more than nine minutes of clock, putting pressure on the WNE defense. The Seahawks converted two fourth downs during the possession before Padraig Brown scored on a two-yard touchdown run with 2:24 remaining on a fourth-down play, giving Salve a 24-14 lead.
• Down 24-14, WNE quickly moved down the field, seeing QB Drew Caouette connect with Matthew McGuire for a 31-yard gain on fourth-and-eight before finding McGuire again for a nine-yard touchdown with 33 seconds remaining.
• The Golden Bears attempted an onside kick following the touchdown, but Salve Regina was able to recover the attempt to ice the game, securing the visitors a 24-21 victory. 

Inside the Lines:

• Western New England's offense produced 395 total yards, while Salve had shy of 300, picking up 289 yards in the game. Salve's pass game produced 248 of its yards. WNE rushed for 230 total yards. 
• Drew Caouette threw ten completions on 19 attempts for 126 yards, throwing a touchdown pass. Corey Kilroy completed just two passes on six attempts, throwing three interceptions. 
• On the ground, WNE saw Marcus Crawford lead the way with 14 attempts for 84 total yards. Matt Lamontagne rushed 15 times for 57 yards, scoring a touchdown. 
• Six different WNE receivers recorded a catch in Saturday's loss. 
• On defense, Anthony Sturniolo led the way with 11 total tackles. Austin Pszczolkowski picked up seven total tackles, three for a loss, including a sack.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• WNE goes for its first win of the season next Saturday, September 19 at 12:00 PM, traveling to Worcester State University.