Worcester, MA- In the final game of the regular season the Worcester State Football team (3-6, 3-5) journeys to Framingham State to take on the Rams as they look to grab their fourth win of the season and the season on a victorious note.
Final
Worcester State: 20
Framingham State: 30
How it Happened:
The Lancers would win the coin toss and elect to receive the ball first which would provide Worcester the ball at the 34 yard line after a positive return from the special teams unit. Junior Cam Ayotte (Millbury, MA) would hit a shot to sophomore Lance Williams (Westerly, RI). This would provide the Lancers a 6-0 lead within the first 30 seconds of the match. The point after try would fall wide and next points would be scored by Framingham to see Worcester down 7-6. Early in the second quarter the Rams would have the Lancers pinned within their own five yard line and convert on the pressure to get the two points after a tackle in their own endzone. The rest of the second quarter would go in favor of the Rams with the home team scoring two touchdowns in the last eight minutes of the quarter.
The third quarter would open up with the Rams getting the ball at their own 26 yardline where the Rams would avoid a three and out by converting a third and 9. Senior John McMasters III (Raynham, MA) would make the tackle that would prevent a longer run that could have seen the play end in the house for Framingham. The drive would extend another 7 plays and end with 7 points on the board for the Rams. With the scoreboard reading 23-6 the Lancers would need to take more risk on offense to get points on the board which saw them convert a third down. A fumble in the next possession though would provide Framingham a short field to work with. The Lancer defensive pressure was too strong though, as they held Framingham at the 11 where sophomore Bryan Aguliar (Leominster, MA) would get an interception and return it to the 22 yard line. The Lancers would go on a 9 play drive but fail to convert a fourth down conversion leaving the opening fourth quarter score 23-6.
The fourth quarter would start with the ball in the Rams hands but they would elect to punt after being faced with a fourth and 5. The Lancers, with 12 minutes to go in the game, saw their offense kick into gear as two senior Nico Holmes (Mansfield, MA) one yard touchdown runs would see the score inch to 23-20. WIth a three point lead the Rams would have to either get points on the board or run the clock out to feel comfortable with 2:17 left to go and the Lancers having multiple timeouts. Framingham would get a great return and within 3 plays have the ball at the one yard line forcing the Lancers to use their last timeout. Framingham looked to seal their victory, rushing the ball into the endzone, to set the score at 30-20. Worcester State would get the ball back down two scores with under 90 seconds left on the board as senior Dylan Hall (Plainville, CT) and senior Drew von Klock (Walpole, MA) would catch two passes and see the Lancers settled at the 25 yard line of the Rams. Ayotte would try to find the endzone to provide Worcester with an onside kick potential but Framingham nabbed the ball first for an interception and took a knee to claim the final regular season victory.
What's Next:
With the final horn, Worcester State Football has concluded their 2024 season under first year coach Zach Besaw.