WORCESTER, Mass. - The Worcester State University football team saw its 2019 season come to a close on Saturday afternoon with a 47-6 loss to Framingham State University on Senior Day at Coughlin Field.
With the loss, Worcester sees its season conclude with a record of 0-10 and 0-8 in the MASCAC. Framingham State clinched the conference title last weekend, but ends its regular season with a perfect 8-0 record in the MASCAC and 8-2 record overall.
Before the game, Worcester State honored its 11 seniors in a special pregame ceremony before they played in their final home game at Coughlin Field. Anthony Casparriello (Westborough, Mass.), Jordan Choquette (Warren, Mass.), Drew Diggins (Fairhaven, Mass.), Kirby Impoinvil (Stoughton, Mass.), Bruce Johnson (Fitchburg, Mass.), Lorenzo Jones (Hartford, Conn.), Donnel Lewis Jr. (Bridgeport, Mass.), Zach MacAlister (Gardner, Mass.), Eric Nerkowski (Shrewsbury, Mass.), Jae'Vaughn Perry (Springfield, Mass.), and Colin Robinson (Centerville, Mass.) were joined on the field by their families and friends.
Framingham State got on the board early and often in the season finale, finding the end zone four times in the first quarter to take a 26-0 lead. Framingham senior tight end Jacob Maher caught a pair of touchdowns, and ran in for another, for the first quarter hat trick.
Elijah Nichols, William Jean, and Austin Nunn all also had first half touchdown catches for the Rams, who took a 40-0 lead into the break.
Framingham State tacked on another score with 3:30 remaining in the third quarter when Devaun Ford scampered in from 38 yards out for the touchdown. The freshman was dominant on the ground on the afternoon, with 22 carries for 191 yards.
Worcester State got on the board in the final minute of the contest to prevent the shutout. The Lancers started the drive on their own 19-yard line, and got things going quickly when freshman quarterback Melke Shabo (Paxton, Mass.) completed a deep ball to fellow rookie Dylan Tenczar (Palmer, Mass.) for 50 yards. Moments later, Shabo found classmate Tyler Leino (Paxton, Mass.) from 11 yards out for the touchdown. Worcester's two-point attempt was unsuccessful, and the game had its final score of 47-6.
Shabo completed nine of his 15 attempts for 101 yards on the afternoon, with one touchdown and one interception. Framingham's Adam Wojenski went 16-of-19 for 217 yards with four touchdowns and a pick.
Maher was the game's leading receiver with seven catches for 108 yards and two scores. Eight different Lancers caught passes on the afternoon.
Worcester State's defense forced four turnovers on the day, with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. Sammy Panagiotopoulos (Lowell, Mass.), AJ Byard (Deerfield Beach, Fla.), and Donnel Lewis Jr. (Bridgeport, Conn.) all had picks for the Lancers, while Gus Ramstrom (Natick, Mass.) forced the fumble and Kirby Impoinvil (Stoughton, Mass.) had the recovery. Panagiotopoulos led Worcester State with nine tackles on the day.
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