BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Freshman kicker Abe Ruelas Villasenor's (West Hartford, Conn.) 39-yard field in overtime lifted the visiting University of New England football team to a dramatic 23-20 come-from-behind victory over Bridgewater State University on Saturday afternoon at Swenson Field.
The Nor'easters improve to 1-1 on the season with the win, while the Bears fall to 0-2. The two teams had never met prior to today's game.
UNE rallied from a 20-6 fourth quarter deficit to send the game into the extra session.
Down by two scores, the Nor'easters capitalized on a BSU fumble with just under ten minutes left to play. Junior safety Trey Snowden (North Conway, N.H.) recovered the fumble and returned the ball 28 yards to the Bears' 22-yard line. Six plays later, junior running back Jaymeson Maheux (Manchester, N.H.) punched it in from a yard out to cut the deficit to 20-12. The key play in the series was a 25-yard pass from senior quarterback Matthew Harkins (Bow, N.H.) to sophomore wide receiver Jakob Rivers (Dracut, Mass.) on third-and-20.
After forcing a punt, the Nor'easter took over at their own 29 yard line with 4:13 remaining. UNE strung together a 15-play drive capped off by a Harkins one-yard TD run on a quarterback sneak with just six seconds left to play. The two key plays in the drive were a third-and-nine pass interference call at the UNE 40, and an eight-yard pass from senior quarterback Connor Sirois (Buxton, Maine) to senior wideout Brett Miller (North Conway, N.H.) on fourth-and-two from the BSU nine. Sirois would also connect with Miller on the two-point conversion attempt to tie the game at 20-20 and force overtime.
Despite having missed two extra points and a short field goal (blocked) in regulation, the Nor'easters elected to attempt the field goal on fourth-and-seven in the overtime session. Ruelas Villasenor calmly drilled the 39-yard kick through the uprights to give the visitors a 23-20 lead.
The Bears picked up one first down during their overtime possession, but were faced with a third-and-six at the ten-yard line. Staring at a similar situation of having missed a PAT and a short field goal in regulation, the Bears lined up for a 27-yard field goal attempt to tie the game. The kick, however, was blocked by sophomore defensive lineman David Hutchison (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) as the Nor'easters came away with the thrilling victory.
Bridgewater State racked up 411 yards of total offense, but just 52 of those came in the second half and overtime. The Bears put together three scoring drives over the first 30 minutes with junior running back Adam Couch (Winchendon, Mass.) opening the scoring with a two-yard touchdown run with 4:07 remaining in the first quarter. The touchdown capped off a six-play, 63-yard drive.
The Nor'easters answered with a nine-play, 80-yard drive with junior running back Cam Mann (Little Falls, N.J.) rumbling into the end zone from 14 yards out to knot the score at 6-6.
The Bears then scored a pair of touchdowns in the final five minutes of the second quarter to take a 20-6 lead into the intermission. Junior quarterback James Cahoon (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) connected with senior wide receiver Kyle Torres (Waltham, Mass.) on a 40-yard touchdown pass with 4:16 remaining. Cahoon then hit senior receiver Ryan Verria (Bridgewater, Mass.) in the end zone with an 18-yard scoring strike with just 31 seconds showing on the scoreboard to put the finishing touches on a five-play, 95-yard drive. Couch got the drive started with a 23-yard run, while the other key play of the drive was a 25-yard pass to Torres with a 15-yard roughing the passer penalty.
Cahoon completed 18 of 31 pass attempts for a career-high 308 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Torres set career bests with eight receptions and 184 yards including the 40-yard TD, while Couch carried the ball 24 times for 101 yards and a touchdown.
BSU junior linebacker Steven Silvia (Dighton, Mass.) put together another impressive performance as he led all players with 17 tackles (13 solo) with one for loss. Silvia also broke up two passes and blocked a field goal. Junior linebacker Brendan Albert (Canton, Mass.) added 13 tackles (seven solo) for the Bears with two going for loss.
Senior punter Thomas Fay (Raynham) had a solid day on special teams as he averaged 40.8 yards on five punt attempts with a long of 58 and one inside the 20.
After being outgained 359-134 in the first half, the Nor'easters took control of the game over the final 30 minutes. UNE ran 56 plays in the second half compared to just 23 for the Bears. The Nor'easter also had possession of the ball for over 23 minutes (23:01) during the last two quarters.
Sirois completed 19 of 26 pass attempts for 93 yards while also adding 58 yards on the ground. Senior running back Jack Mahoney (Hudson, N.H.) carried the ball 15 times for 53 yards with Mann adding 39 yards and a touchdown on ten carries.
Along with his game-ending blocked kick, Hutchison also checked in with a team-high six tackles (four solo) and forced a fumble on a sack.
UNE freshman Shane LaPorte (Southington, Conn.) averaged 34.2 yards on six punts with a long of 40 and two inside the 20.
Both teams are back in action next Saturday afternoon. The Bears entertain Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) foe Plymouth State University at three, while the Nor'easters travel to Alfred State College of Technology for a noontime game with the Pioneers.