WESTFIELD – The Westfield State University football team hosts Coast Guard on Saturday, Oct. 13, in a New England Football Conference Bogan Division game. Kickoff is 1:00 p.m. at Alumni Field for the Military Appreciation Day game.
MILITARY SALUTE: Join us as we pay special tribute to our service men and women. Military Appreciation Day includes free admission to the football game and a complimentary pre-game luncheon at noon in the Woodward Center lounge for active and veteran military personnel. RSVP to Will Lafever, Veteran & Military Service Coordinator, (413) 572-8370, [email protected]
WEB TV: The Coast Guard-Westfield game is being video streamed live on www.mascac.tv. There is no fee to watch the game with Westfield State students Joe Meehan and Matt Stover providing the play-by-play and color commentary. In addition, there are Live Stats for the game. Go to www.WestfieldStateOwls.com to access the video stream and Live Stat links.
ROAD WARRIORS: Westfield finally returns home after playing four of its last five games on the road. Three of the Owls’ final four games are at home, including its Homecoming clash with Framingham State next Saturday, Oct. 20, at 1:30 p.m.
THE SERIES: Coast Guard leads the all-time series, 7-2, but Westfield has won the last two games, including a stunning 24-21 last-second victory in 2011. This is the last scheduled game between the teams as Westfield State is leaving the NEFC for the newly formed Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) for football in 2013.
THE RECORDS: Coast Guard is 2-3 overall and 1-2 in the NEFC Bogan Division. The Bears dropped a 44-21 decision to Bridgewater State last week. High-scoring Coast Guard trounced Fitchburg, 59-0, and MIT, 35-21, and lost shootouts to Merchant Marine, 43-37, and 42-38. Westfield is 2-4 overall and 1-2 in the Bogan Division. The Owls have scored 104 points in their two victories, including a school record 63 points in their 63-13 rout of Maine Maritime last week. Westfield also set school standards for points in a half (42) and points after three quarters (56) in their big win at Castine, Maine. The previous week Westfield lost to Bridgedwater, 26-14.
NEFC WEEKLY HONORS: Westfield sophomore running back Michael Mercadante and senior linebacker Justin Ehrhardt were named to the New England Football Conference weekly honor roll. Mercadante rambled for 154 yards and three touchdowns on 18 carries and added a 28-yard pass reception vs. Maine Maritime. Ehrhardt was named to the honor roll for the second straight week; he posted a game-high 11 tackles with three sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. Coast Guard senior receiver Pat Meggers had 11 receptions for 99 yards and a touchdown vs. Bridgewater.
SCOUTING COAST GUARD: High-scoring Coast Guard ranks first in the 16-team NEFC in scoring, averaging 38 points per game, first in passing (334 yards per game) and second in total offense (454.4). However, the Bears rank last in total defense (455.2) and 13th in scoring defense (30.0). Senior quarterback Jon Resch leads the NEFC in passing; the 6-0, 190-pounder has completed 144 passes in 234 attempts (62 percent) for 1,684 yards and 14 touchdowns. Collis Brown leads the NEFC in receiving with 40 catches for 379 yards and four scores. Meggers has 29 catches for 545 yards and five touchdowns; he leads the NEFC with an average of 109 reception yards per game. Casey Paris has caught 21 passes for 252 yards. Running back Jake Wawrzyniak has rushed for 335 yards and six touchdowns in five games and has caught 15 passes for 109 yards. Wawrzyniak, however, is doubtful for the Westfield game with an injury. The Bears’ other top two backs are also sidelined with injuries as freshman Mike Clancy is scheduled to get his first collegiate start at running back. Coast Guard has a capable placekicker/punter in freshman Tyler Henning, who has converted all 25 extra point attempts and is 3 for 6 in field goals. Henning is averaging 35.3 yards per punt. Defensively, strong safety Dante Adams leads the Bears with 43 tackles and linebacker Parker Bateson has 39 stops. Linebacker Max Walker has 29 tackles and two fumble recoveries and end Aaron Black has 28 tackles, including five for losses and two sacks.
SCOUTING THE OWLS: Mercadante ranks sixth in the NEFC in rushing, averaging 87.2 yards per game. Mercadante has an NEFC-high nine rushing touchdowns and is averaging 4.4 yards per carry (119 rushes, 523 yards). Freshman quarterback Erik Washburn, who will be the starting signal caller for the third straight game, has completed 71 percent (37 for 52) of his passes. He has thrown for 456 yards and three touchdowns. Kevin Parnell is the Owls’ leading receiver (29 catches, 392 yards, 4 TDs) and ranks first in the NEFC in punt returns (19.5 average, 10 for 195 yards) and seventh in kick returns (19.3). Other leading receivers in Westfield’s balanced attack are: Kane Terilli (16-294), tight end Jeff Winchell (14-216), Kevin Nicol (15-140) and tight end Jake Storey (10-94). Westfield senior Kennan Startzell is fourth in NEFC kick scoring with 31 points. He has converted 3 of 4 field goal attempts and 22 of 22 PATs. Startzell has made a school record 56 straight PATs, including all 26 of his attempts last season and his final eight tries in 2010. In last week’s Maine Maritime game, Startzell tied an NEFC record by converting nine extra point attempts. Dependable Dan Dowling ranks sixth in the NEFC, averaging 36.2 yards per punt; 12 of his 34 punts have been inside the 20. Senior linebacker Justin Ehrhardt leads the Owls with 53 tackles followed by linebacker Troy Cutter with 33 stops. Safety Jeff Smith, linebacker Dan Dowling and tackle Mike Mizzoni each has 29 tackles. Senior all-conference end Chris Walker returns to the action after being sidelined for three games with an injury.
LOOKING AHEAD: Westfield hosts Framingham on Homecoming, Oct. 20, at 2:00, travels to Buzzards Bay Oct. 27 to play Mass. Maritime, and concludes its season by hosting Fitchburg State Nov. 3. Coast Guard travels to Worcester State on Oct. 20.
MILITARY SALUTE: Join us as we pay special tribute to our service men and women. Military Appreciation Day includes free admission to the football game and a complimentary pre-game luncheon at noon in the Woodward Center lounge for active and veteran military personnel. RSVP to Will Lafever, Veteran & Military Service Coordinator, (413) 572-8370, [email protected]
