Football to Host Bridgewater State for Homecoming Weekend

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Westfield State University football (0-6, 0-4 MASCAC) will host their 2022 homecoming game against the Bridgewater State Bears (3-3, 3-1 MASCAC) on Saturday, October 22^nd in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference football matchup from Alumni field in Westfield, Mass.

Last Week: The Owls will look to bounce back after a 34-7 loss to Umass Dartmouth. Junior quarterback Colby Pires (Milford, Mass.) completed 13 of his 31 total passes for 156 yards and a touchdown. Junior tight end Dylan Disabella (Granby, Conn.) received 104 yards in seven receptions including a miraculous dive into the endzone for the Owls' only touchdown of the game. The Bears will enter this week coming off a massive 45-0 victory against Worcester State. Senior quarterback James Cahoon (Buzzards Bay, Mass.) completed 24-31 for a total of 302 yards and three touchdowns, assisted by senior running back Adam Couch (Winchendon, Mass.) who rushed for 163 total yards and three touchdowns.

OWLS ON OFFENSE: The Owls have options at quarterback with Pires and sophomore Gabriel Fernandez (Holyoke, Mass.) sharing the load under center. In four games Pires has completed 52 of 97 passes for a season total of 587 yards and four touchdowns. Fernandez has completed 30 of 69 passes for 380 yards and two touchdowns. Junior wide receiver Michael Foley (South Windsor, Conn.) leads Westfield State receivers with 369 receiving yards in 14 receptions for three total touchdowns.  Junior running back Jordan Smith (Coventry, Conn.) leads the Owls' ground game with 240 total rushing yards and three touchdowns.

OWLS ON DEFENSE: Sophomore linebacker Tyler Cooley (Randolph, Mass.) leads Westfield State in tackles with 26 solo and 47 assisted stops. Cooley is recording a MASCAC-leading 12.2 tackles per game for the Owls. The Owls have forced ten fumbles this year. The duo of Cooley and senior linebacker Cameron Danahy (Kingston, Mass.) have each forced two. Junior Cade Nelson (Shrewsberry, Mass.) leads the defensive line this season, tallying 19 solo tackles, 38 total tackles, and two and a half sacks. Junior Christian Julian (Hingham, Mass.) stands tall amongst defensive backs, accumulating 34 total tackles, and one interception this season.

OWLS SPECIAL TEAMS: First-year kicker Evan Milstead (Riverside, Cali.) is eight for eleven on extra point attempts, and two for three on field goal attempts. His longest make was for 39 yards. Senior Shane Clark (Bellows Falls, VT.) and junior Owen Thompson (Plympton, Mass.) share punting responsibilities. Clark's longest punt came last week against Umass Dartmouth, where he launched a 53-yard punt. Thompson and Clark both average around 33 yards per punt.

BEARS ON OFFENSE: Senior quarterback James Cahoon has shined for the Bears this season, as he is currently second on the MASCAC individual passing leaderboards with 253.7 passing yards per game. Cahoon has completed 117 of 178 (65.7%) passes for 1,522 yards and 17 touchdowns. Senior running back Adam Couch leads the ground game for Bridgewater State with 118 carries for 674 yards and seven touchdowns. The Bears receiving core is made up of the trio of seniors Michael Nocera (Cumberland, RI.) Kyle Torres (Waltham, Mass.), and sophomore Jack McCarthy (Braintree, Mass.). Nocera has accumulated 265 yards in 25 receptions. Torres has earned 277 yards through 23 receptions, and McCarthy has totaled 272 on 22 receptions. Each receiver averages around four receptions, for approximately 45 yards per game.

BEARS ON DEFENSE: Senior linebacker Brendan Albert (Canton, Mass.) leads Bridgewater State's defensive unit with 34 solo tackles, and 58 total stops this season. Albert currently ranks second in the MASCAC for tackles per game (9.7) behind Westfield State's Tyler Cooley. Also leading the MASCAC in tackles per game is Bridgewater State's senior linebacker Steven Silvia (Dighton, Mass.) at 7.3 tackles per game. Silvia has tallied 27 solo tackles, and 44 total stops this season. Senior defensive back Jaren Alves (East Providence, RI.) has recorded three interceptions this season, all coming from his 40-27 win against Western Connecticut.

BEARS SPECIAL TEAMS: Junior kicker and punter Shane Drake (Franklin, Mass.) has taken over most of the kicking duties for the Bears this season. In six games played Drake has punted 18 times for a total of 693 yards and an average of 38.5 yards per punt. Drake's longest punt of the year was for 59 yards in a 40-27 win over Western Connecticut. On field goal attempts, Drake is kicking 100% on four of four attempts. Drake has gone eight for ten this season on extra-point attempts. First-year Joey Naso (Hopewell Junction, NY) has done well in his rookie season kicking 20 of 22 successful extra points this year.

Next Week: Following their matchup against Bridgewater State, the Westfield State University Owls will flock to Plymouth State on Saturday, October 29^th for a MASCAC conference matchup. The Bridgewater State Bears will migrate to Dartmouth Massachusetts to battle the Umass Dartmouth Corsairs.

Written by Sports Information intern Dave Cataloni