Westfield State linebackers Tyler Robbins, Andrew Carpenter and Zach Howard anchor the Owls defense. (Courtesy of Westfield State University Sports)
WESTFIELD – Westfield State Owls football has been projected to finish seventh in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference in 2018, according to a vote of the league’s nine head coaches released on Wednesday afternoon.
Westfield finished with a 3-7 record a year ago, 3-5 in the MASCAC. However, the Owls closed the season with significant momentum, winning the final three home games, including an 18-0 shutout of Western Connecticut on Senior Night to close the season.
Framingham State was picked to win the league, finishing with 60 points and five first place votes, followed Plymouth State with 52 points and two first place votes. Western Connecticut, Worcester State, UMass Dartmouth and Bridgewater State round out the group picked to finish ahead of the Owls, while Mass Maritime and Fitchburg State placed eighth and ninth respectively.
There is some disagreement about which team might top the league, as Framingham, Plymouth, Worcester and UMass Dartmouth each received at least one first-place vote.
Westfield returns all-conference senior running back Travon Holder (Cheney/East Hartford, Conn.), who ran for 1,147 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2017-18. He will run behind a veteran offensive line that includes all-conference center Saul Cabrera (Methuen, Mass.).
The Owls roster features 17 seniors or graduate students, including All-Conference linebacker Zach Howard (Prouty/Spencer, Mass.), who joins classmates Andrew Carpenter (Auburn, Mass.), Tyler Robbins (Southwick, Mass.) and Nick Borsari in the heart of the Owls defense.
Westfield kicks off the 2018 season with a home game on Friday night, August 31 at the renovated Alumni Field with a 7:00 p.m. start against Nichols College. – Courtesy of Westfield State University Sports
