Football Rolls to 34-14 Victory over UMass Dartmouth
Dartmouth, Mass. – The Framingham State University football rolled to a 34-14 victory over the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth this afternoon in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action at Cressy Field.
With the win, the Rams improve to 7-1 on the year and are now 5-1 in the league, while the Corsairs fall to 2-6 overall and are now 2-4 in the MASCAC.
The Rams got on the board in the opening minutes of the first when junior Will Cowdrey (Marlborough, Mass.) capped an eight play, 66-yard drive with a one-yard scoring run. After the PAT failed, the Rams led 6-0.
The Rams extended the lead in the opening minutes of the second quarter on a 32-yard touchdown pass from sophomore Adam Wojenski (Stratford, Conn.) to junior Napoleon Miller (Boston, Mass.). Freshman Ryan Clifford (Brockton, Mass.) converted the extra point and the Rams led 13-0.
UMass Dartmouth cut into the deficit midway through the second on a four-yard touchdown run from Stephen Gacioch.
The Rams put the game out of reach with a pair of third quarter touchdowns. Cowdrey caught a 28-yard scoring strike from Wojenski with 7:55 on the clock and Miller caught his second TD of the day, this one a 14-yard pass from Wojenski with just over three minutes remaining, pushing the lead to 27-7.
The Corsairs capitalized on a penalty on the ensuing kickoff for their second scoring drive of the game that was capped by a Mike Slaughter two-yard run.
Senior Kenneth Bartolo (Malden, Mass.) set up the Rams final scoring drive with an interception that he returned to the Corsairs six yard line. On the first play from scrimmage, Wojenski and junior Nasir Thomas (Springfield, Mass.) connected for a six-yard score.
Wojenski finished the game 14-of-24 for 164 yards with four touchdowns and a pick, while Miller had five catches for 79 yards and a pair of scores.
The Rams defense was paced by 14 tackles from sophomore Joshua Onujiogu (Wareham, Mass.) including 10 solo stops, a sack and 3.5 tackles for a loss. Senior Nathan Fleming (Windham, Conn.) added 13 tackles including 11 solo and 3.5 for a loss.
Senior Jaquan Harris (Boston, Mass.) recorded an interception in the game and a return of 52 yards to go along with six tackles and a pass breakup. The interception was Harris' ninth of the season establishing a new single season mark for the Rams as he surpassed the old mark of eight that was set by George Claffin in 1986.
The Rams close out the regular season with a pair of home games. They first host Western Connecticut State on Saturday, November 4th at noon at Bowditch Field and close the season on November 11th when they entertain Worcester State.