Bridgewater State Falls to Framingham State in Showdown

By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise (Brockton)

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The decisive stretch lasted just under six minutes beginning at the midway point of the third quarter.

For the Bridgewater State University football team, its bid to stay in contention for at least a share of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference title disappeared in that short span.

A 10-7 halftime lead the Bears had taken over defending champion Framingham State University quickly turned into a 24-10 deficit by the end of the quarter when the Rams scored two touchdowns and a field goal within 6:58.

It was too much for BSU to overcome, and the Bears were dealt a 27-17 loss by Framingham State, which clinched another MASCAC championship before a crowd of 1,033 at Swenson Field on Saturday afternoon.

The Rams (8-1, 7-0) have now won 31 straight conference games, beginning in 2012 when they were in the New England Football Conference.

BSU (6-3, 5-2) had a four-game winning streak stopped by Framingham State, which has six straight victories over the Bears.

"We played with a lot of energy in the first half,'' said BSU coach Chuck Denune. "I wish we would have played with a little more energy in the third quarter. When things weren't going well, I wish that we would have kept up the intensity a little bit more.

"They're great players that Framingham has and they've got a good thing going for them. You have to tip your hat to them. They're a good football team and made some plays in the third quarter and it made the difference.''

The Rams went 71 yards in eight plays to move in front, 14-10, with 7:34 left in the third quarter as Tevin Jones caught a 5-yard TD pass from Matt Silva (21-for-30, 253 yards), their second connection of the day.

A 41-yard punt return by Quron Wright and a face-mask penalty set Framingham State up at the BSU 8-yard line on the next possession, and Silva's first-down pass went for an 8-yard TD to running back Jalen Green of Brockton. That made it 21-10 with 5:49 remaining in the quarter.

A holding penalty on the kickoff put the Bears back at the 11, and after being unable to move, the Rams' next series started at the BSU 32. Framingham State wound up with a 28-yard field goal from Sean Wlasuk with 1:36 to go in the third quarter, making it 24-10.

"Field position and the kicking game really hurt us in the third quarter,'' said Denune. "We didn't make the most of all the opportunities that were out there.''

Wlasuk added a 20-yard field goal with 10:37 remaining after getting a second chance. He missed from 22 yards out, but BSU was called for an offside penalty, and the Rams went up, 27-10.

The lone Bears' score of the second half came with 9:32 remaining as Michael Viola (six catches, 109 yards) went 71 yards with a pass from Danny Higgins (14-for-30, 244 yards), staying on his feet along the right sideline.

"We've been a second-half team for the last three or four years,'' said Rams coach Tom Kelley. "I was a little concerned because we weren't able to run the ball at all. They were throwing on us.

"We made adjustments at halftime. We came out and scored right away and jumped on top of them. When you've got a Matt Silva, I've got all the confidence. We did what we needed to do.''

Jones caught a 4-yard TD pass from Silva with a minute to go in the first quarter for a 7-0 Rams' lead, but Liam Murphy kicked a 27-yard field goal with 8:05 left in the second quarter and Higgins threw a 31-yard TD pass to Brandon Giles with four seconds remaining in the half to put BSU in front.

"We played hard,'' said Denune. "It was a big game and I feel bad for the guys. They wanted it bad. But you've got to go out and take it. The young guys will learn from this and pay off in the future for us.''

The Bears play at Mass. Maritime Academy in the Cranberry Bowl on Saturday, and a win might earn them a spot in an ECAC bowl game on Nov. 21.

Trevon Offley of Brockton, sidelined the past three games with a knee ailment, led the Rams with 30 rushing yards. Teammate Greg Peschel, a linebacker from Taunton, had five tackles in the win that clinches a spot in the NCAA tourney for Framingham State.

"It feels great winning it here,'' said Peschel. "Just hearing all the fans and everything so close to home was great.''