Football

Defensive back Pego Jean-Paul picked off two passes to help the Gulls win their NEFC Boyd Division opener

Gulls Grapple Golden Bears

EC scores final three touchdowns to beat WNEC

Sept. 24, 2005

Final Stats

SPRINGFILELD, MA - Endicott College had to wait almost two quarters for its ground attack to wear down Western New England College but wait was well worth it.

The Gulls scored the final three touchdowns of the game and relied on its stifling defense to upend the Golden Bears, 24-14, Saturday in the Gulls first game of the 2005 NEFC Boyd Division schedule.

Endicott (2-2, 1-0 NEFC Boyd) has now won two straight games while the Golden Bears dropped to 0-3 (0-1 NEFC Boyd).

WNEC took a 14-3 lead with 5:08 to play in the first half when Jordan Capitanio ran for a 53-yard touchdown. The rest of the game would belong to the Gulls, however, as junior running back Gerard Festa (Lynn, MA/St. Mary's) collected the first of his two touchdowns with 32 seconds to play in the half on a one-yard plunge, cutting the lead to 14-10.

Endicott racked up 272 yards on the ground to WNEC's 139 on the legs of Festa, who amassed 155 yards rushing on 28 carries (5.4 yards per carry). Junior running back Jeff Trinque (Clinton, MA/Clinton) added 69 rushing yards on six carries and sophomore quarterback Alex Smith (Winthrop, MA/Winthrop) completed nine of 14 pass attempts for 91 yards and no interceptions. The Gulls also had a 3-2 edge in forced turnovers and held the ball for 36:18.

Sophomore defensive back Pego Jean-Paul (Stamford, CT/Stamford) led the defense with two interceptions and 6.5 tackles. Freshman defensive back Bruno Silva (Weymouth, MA/Weymouth) had another impressive game, collecting five tackles while the defensive line controlled the line of scrimmage.

Junior defensive end Joe Leaver (Stoughton, MA/Stoughton) had four tackes (2.5 for losses) and a sack, while junior defensive linemen Matt McDonnell (Foxboro, MA, Xaverian) and Matt Talis (Lynnfield, MA/Lynnfield) each added three tackles.