Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
Western New England 49, Nichols 6
Springfield, Mass. – Golden Bear Stadium
Saturday, October 3, 2015
All-Time Series & Streaks
The Bison slipped to 15-17 all-time against the Golden Bears, who have won the last nine meetings. Western New England improved to 9-7 all-time against Nichols at home.
Three Stars of the Game
1 – Western New England junior Nick Connell (East Marion, N.Y.) – rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns (13, 1)
2 – Western New England senior Blair Cook (New Brunswick, N.J.) – team-high 11 tackles, including two tackles for loss and one sack
3 – Western New England graduate student Tyler Ward (Wyckoff, N.J.) – threw for 213 yards and a pair of touchdowns; completed 73 percent of his passes (11-of-15)
Quick Synopsis
Western New England took a 21-0 lead into the half before tacking on 21 more in the third quarter, extending its lead to 42-6. Sophomore Will Dyson (Cliffside Park, N.J.) caught a three-yard touchdown pass – the first of his collegiate career – from sophomore Michael McCourt (New Fairfield, Conn.) in the third for Nichols, which was outgained 574-179 on the afternoon. Ward threw for 213 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the Golden Bears and sophomore Dante Aiken (Brooklyn, N.Y.) rushed for 93 yards on seven carries (13.3 ypc).
Key Stat of the Game
The Golden Bears compiled 337 rushing yards, led by Aiken with 93 and Connell with 88. The Bison were held to 46 rushing yards, led by junior Grant Klimek (Toms River, N.J.) with 14.
Turning Point
Connell capped a seven-play, 63-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run early in the second half to extend the Golden Bears lead to 21-0. The drive took 2:09.
Quick Hits
-Nichols freshman Brenden Massey (Attleboro, Mass.) recorded career-highs in both receptions (five) and receiving yards (50).
-The Golden Bears were a +3 in turnovers as they recovered all three fumbles they forced.
-The two teams were a combined 9-29 on third down; the Bison were 6-for-19 while the Golden Bears were 3-of-10.
-Western New England was 5-of-7 in the red zone, compared to 1-for-4 for Nichols.
-Nichols signal-callers were a combined 10-of-25 for 113 yards; McCourt completed 7-of-17 for 96 yards and one score while sophomore Jacob Romero (Placentia, Calif.) was 3-of-8 for 37 yards.
-The Golden Bears averaged 6.7 yards per rush on the afternoon.
-Junior Terrence N'Dabian (Stratford, Conn.) caught one pass on the day for Western New England, a 58-yard scoring strike from Ward in the first quarter.
-Sophomore McCoy Scott (Bronx, N.Y.) led the Bison with 11 tackles (six solo), followed by sophomore TJ Ellison (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) with seven.
Next up
Nichols (1-4, 0-2 NEFC) – Saturday, October 17 @ Curry, 1:00 p.m.
Western New England (5-0, 2-0 NEFC) – Saturday, October 17 @ Maine Maritime, 12:00 p.m.