MILTON, Mass. – After leading by only 10 points at intermission, visiting Fitchburg State University outscored Curry 21-3 in the second half, en route to a 31-3 non-conference win Friday night in Milton, the home opener for the Colonels.
The Falcons opened the scoring a little over halfway through the first quarter when junior Garrett Dellechiaie (Leominster, Mass.) connected with sophomore Jesse Lastra (Lehigh Acres, Fla.) on a 32-yard throw and catch capping off a seven-play drive that covered 45 yards in a little over three minutes.
Fitchburg finished off the scoring for the first half with a field goal off the foot of junior Christopher Ludwig (Fort Myers, Fla.) from 22 yards out. That capped off a four-play drive that only accumulated two yards but brought the clock down to less than 10 minutes in the half. However, Curry could not score before they had to kick it back to the Falcons to start the second half.
On Fitchburg's first possession of the second half, they drove 60 yards on six plays only needing two minutes before junior Taylor Wrice-Brooks (Malden, Mass.) scampered in from five yards out, putting the Falcons up 17-0.
The Colonels would in turn fumble the ensuing kickoff, giving the ball back to Fitchburg which went on to score on a similar drive, this time using seven plays to go 62 yards in just over two minutes. Senior Jordan Almore (Springfield, Mass.) took this one in from only a yard out to increase the Falcons' lead to 24-0.
To end the third quarter and start the fourth, Fitchburg put together a 17- play drive, taking 10 ½ minutes off the clock while driving 88 yards as Dellechiaie connected with junior Trayvon Neal (Philadelphia, Penn.) for a four yard catch. This would end the scoring for the Falcons, putting them up 31-0 with a little over seven and a half minutes left to play in the game.
In response, Curry put together its own drive of 66 yards on 13 plays while using six minutes of clock time. Freshman Marc Mrozek (Stratford, Conn.) made his first field goal of the year from 33 yards out which would also end the scoring for the game, resulting in a 31-3 score in favor of Fitchburg.
The Falcons offense was led by Dellechiaie who threw for 160 yards and two touchdowns, while also scrambling for 36 yards on the ground. Wrice-Brooks led the game with 81 yards rushing and also scored a touchdown. Lastra led the team in receiving with 91 yards on eight catches while scoring once.
Senior Taron Seaforth-Howard (Lynn, Mass.) led the Fitchburg defense with seven solo tackles and also recorded an interception. Senior Tre Watson (Worcester, Mass.) and sophomore Mamour Samb (Pawtucket, R.I.) were right behind with six solo tackles, and Watson also recorded a tackle for a loss and an interception as well. Junior Malcolm Brown-Simpson (Lynn, Mass.) led the game with 2.5 tackles for loss totaling for six yards lost as well as recording five total tackles for the Falcons.
The Colonels were led by junior Mike O'Hearn (Billerica, Mass.) who went 25-40 for 156 yards with four interceptions. O'Hearn also led the running game for Curry with 14 yards on six attempts. Classmate Anthony Nastasi (River Edge, N.J.) led the receivers with 10 catches for a game high 98 yards. Nastasi also led the game in all-purpose yards with 98.
On the other side of the ball, sophomore Steve Grogan (Forestdale, Mass.) and freshman Luc Zikianda (Lynn, Mass.) led the game with eight total tackles while Zikianda also recorded the only Curry sack and added two tackles for losses totaling four negative yards. Sophomore Devin Williams (Gardener, Mass.) recorded seven total tackles while junior classmates Christian Vellante (Wrentham, Mass.) and Stephen Blake (East Hartland, Conn.) totaled six tackles for the Colonels.
Fitchburg State will be on the road again as they travel to Framingham Saturday for a 12:00 p.m. MASCAC showdown against Framingham State University. Curry will also be on the road as they go to Anna Maria College in Paxton, Mass. for a 3:00 p.m. showdown Saturday afternoon.