The Westfield defense held Western Connecticut’s Octavias McKoy – the nation’s leading rusher – to 36 net yards on 17 carries. (File photo by Mickey Curtis)
DANBURY, Conn. – Western Connecticut senior quarterback Will Arndt (Sandy Hook, CT) amassed 376 total offensive yards and was involved in four touchdowns as the Colonials defeated visiting Westfield State University, 37-0 on Senior Day at The Westside Athletic Complex.
Arndt scored on runs of seven and 92 yards while tossing a pair of touchdowns, a 23-yarder to Michael Antonio (Cromwell, CT) and a 31-yard hook up with Brandon Johnson (Montville, CT) to lead Western, now 7-2 overall and 6-2 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference, to its fourth straight victory and give it hope of receiving a coveted ECAC Tournament appearance. Berths for the ECACs will be released by Monday afternoon.
Senior running back Octavias McKoy (Stratford, CT), the nation’s leading rusher and scorer, was stifled on the day, as he collected just 36 yards on 17 carries. One of those carries, however, resulted in a 15-yard touchdown. He added onto his school record and now has 26 touchdowns on the year. McKoy came into the game leading Division III with 209.9 rushing and 227.38 all-purpose yards per game and 25 TDs.
Earlier this season, McKoy set a new NCAA All-Divisions record with 455 yards rushing in a 55-35 victory over Worcester State University.
The Western defense, which has allowed just 20.6 points and 316 total offensive yards a game this fall, dialed in a zero on Saturday and allowed a stingy 156 yards to the Owls.
Michael Lacaria (Watertown, CT) led the way for the winners with 10 tackles. Tyrell Ballard (Bridgeport, CT), Devante Credle (West Haven, CT), Devin Myers(Waterbury, CT) and Bill Birdsell (Newtown, CT) each had five tackles. Myers recorded a pair of sacks and three tackles for a loss.
Westfield, 5-5 overall and 4-5 in the MASCAC, was paced by senior running back Brian Beachemin (Athol, MA) who had 11 carries for 36 yards.
Tim Rich (Chelmsford, MA) completed 11 of 22 passes for 91 yards but was sacked twice and threw three interceptions.
Leading the Colonials’ receiving corps was Connor Falaguerra (Milford, CT) and senior Tommy Bruder (Warwick, NY), who pulled in five and four catches on the day.
Saturday marked the final game for Westfield head coach Steve Marino who will retire at the end of the year after manning the helm for 24 years for the Owls.
