NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Curry College football team dropped its non-conference finale, falling to the United States Coast Guard Academy by a final score of 17-7 on Saturday afternoon at Cadet Memorial Field. The win pushes the Bears to 3-1 while the Colonels slip to 0-3.
Coast Guard was able to score first by capping off a ten-play, 25-yard drive with a 39-yard field goal by senior Patrick Crowley (San Marino, Calif.). The field goal was the lone score of the opening quarter.
The Bears added to their lead in the second quarter as turned in a ten-play, 93-yard possession that was finished off by a seven-yard rush by junior Jon Wagner (Huntingdon, Pa.). The extra point by Crowley split the uprights to make the score 10-0.
Just over five minutes later, senior quarterback Ryan Jones (Puxatawney, Pa.) connected with sophomore wide receiver Damaso Jaime (Lake Como, N.J.) for a 33-yard touchdown. Crowley added the point after once again to extend the lead to 17-0.
Curry got on the board just before the end of the half, putting together a 14-play, 67-yard drive that was finished off by a one-yard rush by senior quarterback Nick Juvelier (Centereach, N.Y.). Freshman Evan Damian (East Haven, Conn.) tacked on the extra point to make the score 17-7.
The final two quarters were a defensive battle as neither team was able to find the end zone.
Coast Guard had a chance to score on the opening drive of the second half but was unable to convert a 38-yard field goal as Crowley missed wide left.
On the Bears' first possession of the final quarter, Crowley had another opportunity from 32 yards out and he missed wide left again.
The Colonels were able to put together a long 13-play drive that featured eight completions by Juvelier. Curry drove all the way to the Coast Guard seven-yard line, but the drive was halted by a forced fumble on a rush by Juvelier. The fumble was forced by senior R.J. Robiskie (Murrieta, Calif.) and recovered by Crowley at the Bears' five-yard line.
The Colonels had two more possessions but were unable to put any more points on the board.
Curry was led by its quarterback Juvelier, pacing the offense with 394 yards on 37-of-59 passing. Junior Zach Levy (Bellingham, Mass.) finished the contest with 31 rushing yards while Villanueva pulled in 13 receptions for a career-high 220 yards. Freshman Blake Schader (Assonet, Mass.) led all Colonel defenders with a game-high 10 tackles.
Jones led the Bears through the air, going 21-of-45 for 198 yards along with one touchdown. Wagner paced the ground game with 91 yards on 14 carries with one touchdown. Junior Justin Moffatt (Odessa, Fla.) led the Coast Guard receivers with 80 yards on seven receptions. Defensively, senior Mark Wicke (San Marino, Calif.) registered a team-high nine tackles (eight solo, one assisted) and broke up one pass.
Curry will return home to host the University of New England in its Commonwealth Coast Football opener on Saturday, October 5 at 1:00 p.m. on Homecoming and Family Weekend. Coast Guard remains at home to host Catholic University on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
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