WORCESTER, Mass. – Junior running back Adam Couch (Winchendon, Mass.) rushed for 190 yards and three touchdowns to lead the visiting Bridgewater State University football team to a decisive 49-13 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) victory over Worcester State University on Saturday afternoon at Coughlin Memorial Field.
The Bears improve to 4-2 on the season and a perfect 4-0 in the MASCAC with their fourth straight win, while the Lancers fall to 1-4 overall and 1-2 in conference play. The Bears are now 24-11 all-time versus the Lancers and 13-4 on the road as the two teams first met in 1986. Bridgewater State has also won 15 of the last 16 meetings of the two teams.
Couch carried the ball 19 times and scored on runs of nine, five and four yards.
BSU junior quarterback James Cahoon (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) completed 9 of 16 pass attempts for 192 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while senior wide receiver Kyle Torres (Waltham, Mass.) caught three passes for 109 yards and a score.
Bridgewater State scored on five of its first six possessions of the first half to open up a 35-0 lead. Two of the scoring drive were set up by Worcester turnovers.
A 76-yard touchdown pass from Cahoon to Torres on the Bears' opening possession got the scoring started. The visitors then turned an Isaiah Bascon (Nahant, Mass.) interception into a Couch nine-yard touchdown run to make it a 14-0 game with 9:47 remaining in the first quarter.
A Couch five-yard TD scamper capped off an eight-play, 50-yard drive to extend the lead to 21-0 with 5:11 showing on the first quarter scoreboard. Less than a minute later, junior linebacker Brendan Albert (Canton, Mass.) returned a fumble 26 yards for a touchdown to put the Bears up by four scores. For Albert, the touchdown marked his second scoop and score of the season.
The Bears put together their longest drive of the first half as they moved the ball 93 yards on ten plays resulting in an 11-yard touchdown pass from Cahoon to sophomore tight end Jalen Kopecky (Pawtucket, R.I.) to cap off the first half scoring with 10:01 remaining in the second quarter. The touchdown marked the first in Kopecky's collegiate career.
The Bears would take the 35-0 lead into the intermission.
Bridgewater took the opening kickoff of the second half and marched 79 yards on five plays culminating in five-yard touchdown run by Couch to push the lead to 42-0. Couch rushed for 53 yards on the drive.
After forcing a turnover on downs early in the fourth quarter, the Bears took over at the Worcester 36. Six plays later, sophomore running back Greg Demetri (North Reading, Mass.) punched it in from two yards out for his first collegiate touchdown as the lead ballooned to 49-0.
Senior kicker and punter Thomas Fay (Raynham, Mass.) continued his strong play as he converted all seven of his extra point attempts. Fay also sent his only punt of the afternoon 49 yards.
Albert, in addition to the fumble recovery for the touchdown, recorded 13 tackles, 1 ½ sacks and one pass breakup to pace the BSU defense. Bascon notched three solo tackles and a pass breakup to go along with his first interception in a BSU uniform. Sophomore linebacker Kodi Saotome (Warren, R.I.) added ten tackles, including one for a loss, for the Bears, while freshman cornerback Nolan Arrascue (Yarmouthport, Mass.) had a sack for a loss of eight yards and forced a fumble.
Sophomore quarterback Mike Loveless (Nashua, N.H.) rushed for a three-yard touchdown and found Ke'Vaughn Davis (Utica, N.Y.) for a 21-yard strike to round out the scoring late in the fourth quarter. Loveless and senior quarterback Aaron-Moses Williams (Springfield, Mass.) each passed for 116 yards for Worcester State, while Davis hauled in nine receptions for 112 yards and the touchdown.
Senior safety Noah Peterson (Millbury, Mass.) led the Worcester State defense with eight tackles, while junior safety Mason Broyles (Millbury, Mass.) added six solo tackles and forced a fumble.
The Bears racked up 483 yards of offense with 291 coming on the ground. The Lancers finished with 364 total yards including 232 through the air. Bridgewater turned the ball over three times, all fumbles, while Worcester had one fumble and one interception.
Following a bye week, Bridgewater State will welcome MASCAC foe Westfield State University to Swenson Field for the Bears' Homecoming Game on Saturday, October 23rd at four o'clock. The Lancers are back in action next Saturday as they travel to Massachusetts Maritime Academy for a noontime conference game with the Buccaneers.