Football Stumbles Against Westfield State

WESTFIELD, Mass. –  The Worcester State University football team dropped a 38-15 decision to Westfield State Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field.

Westfield State senior quarterback Andrew Peltier (Holyoke, Mass.) threw for two TD's and ran for two more, and freshman running back Leesandro Colon (Holyoke, Mass.) ran for 194 yards and a TD to highlight the Owls in the victory.

Westfield fell behind 6-0 as Worcester State marched 72 yards on 10 plays on their first drive, capped by a 10 yard touchdown pass from Aaron-Moses Willliams (Springfield, Mass.) to Jordan Choquette (Warren, Mass.).

The Owls answered a few minutes later with a 97-yard scoring drive, as Peltier connected with Kevin Faughnan (Levittown, NY) on a 32-yard bomb down the right side that hit Faughnan mid-stride in the end zone.

The Lancers regained the lead, 9-7 with a 35 yard Kyle Wall (Sterling, Mass.) field goal midway through the second quarter, and held that lead at the half. 

The third quarter was all Westfield, as Peltier showed off his scrambling ability with a 32-yard run down the the Worcester 6-yard line, then called his own number on the ensuing play, punching the ball in for a 14-9 Owls lead.

Westfield got great field position when a bad snap on a Worcester punt attempt led to Shane Clark (Bellows Falls, Vt.)  tackling Wall for a 17-yard loss to give Westfield the ball at the Worcester 32.  Aided by a Lancers' unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that kept the drive alive on fourth down, Peltier converted with a three-yard TD scramble that boosted Westfield's lead to 21-9.

After the Owls got a 35-yard Corey Pooler (Middleboro, Mass.) field goal, the Lancers had a chance to keep the game in doubt in the fourth quarter, marching 75 yards and scoring with a one-yard TD plunge from Amir Mells that trimmed the lead to 24-15, but the ensuing point after try sailed wide left, keeping it a two-score lead for Westfield with 5:30 left in regulation.

The Lancers' onside kick failed, giving Westfield possession at the Worcester 27-yard line, and a couple plays later, Peltier and Clark ended all doubt about the outcome, connecting on a middle screen, with Clark scampering to the left side for a 22-yard score.

Worcester went four-and-out on the next series, and Colon polished the game off with a zig-zagging 23-yard TD run down the right side, pinballing into the end zone off a Lancers defender for the 38-15 final.

Colon finished with 194 yards on 24 carries, his second straight 100-yards game.    Peltier was just 9-24 passing for 132 yards but tossed a pair of touchdowns, and ran for 65 yards as well. Faughnan led Owls receivers with 44 yards on a pair of catches.  Senior punter Cody Cleveland (Northampton, Mass.) averaged 44 yards on three punts, including a 58 yarder, and a coffin-corner job that buried the Lancers at their own six to start a series. 

Joseph Mazzotta (Norwood, Mass.) made 14 tackles to lead Westfield, Rashawn Settles (Lowell, Mass.) added 11 stops, and Joseph Dumoulin (Holyoke, Mass.) added nine tackles and an interception.

For Worcester Williams finished 25-48 for 211 yards and a TD.  Choquette finished with eight grabs for 89 yards, and Alexander Childs (Bolton, Mass.) ran for 69 yards. Matt Johnston (Uxbridge, Mass.) led Worcester with 12 tackles.

Westfield State wins its second straight game to improve to 2-7 overall and a 2-5 in the MASCAC, while Worcester State slips to 0-9 and 0-7 MASCAC.  

Worester State will be back in action next Saturday, November 16, as the Lancers host Framingham State in the final game of the season. Senior Day ceremonies will take place pregame with kickoff scheduled for high noon at Coughlin Field.

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Release courtesy of Westfield State Sports Information.