Box Score 

MONTCLAIR, N.J. – Montclair State (3-1, 3-0 NJAC) used a late scoring drive to overcome a fourth-quarter William Paterson (1-3, 0-3 NJAC) rally, as the Red Hawks celebrated Homecoming with a 24-17 victory Oct. 3 at Sprague Field.

Senior wide receiver Joel Rivera (Hoboken, N.J./Hoboken) became the Pioneers' career touchdown receptions leader with his third-quarter score. He finished with five catches for 50 yards. William Paterson senior quarterback Matt Marshall (Burlington, N.J./Burlington City) was 19-for-43 for 174 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Sophomore Marcus McKinney (Paterson, N.J./John F. Kennedy), the league's leading rusher (96.3 yards/game) entering the contest, was held to 13 carries for 33 yards. Senior tight end Chris Schule (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) added six catches for 48 yards, and sophomore Joe Muraglia, Jr. (Belleville, N.J./Queen of Peace) caught four passes for 51 yards.

Defensively for William Paterson, Jim Hamill (Stanhope, N.J./Lenape Valley Regional) had a game-best 12 tackles (seven solo, 1.0 TFL) and one of the Pioneers' four interceptions. Junior Dyon Moore (Brooklyn, N.Y./Hudson Catholic) posted nine stops (seven solo, 4.0 TFL), sophomore Damian DiIorio (Totowa, N.J./Passaic Valley) had nine tackles (five solos) and an INT, and sophomore Stephen Bovo, Jr. (Dunellen, N.J./Dunellen) intercepted a pair of passes, returning one for a touchdown, while making three stops.


Following a scoreless first quarter, MSU got on the board when Scott Kubrak returned a punt 54 yards to find pay dirt. Senior Marco Capozzoli's extra point was good, making it a 7-0 score with 11:46 remaining in the second period. The Pioneers had a chance to answer seven minutes later when a Hamill interception gave William Paterson the ball inside the Montclair 30-yard line, put a pass break up in the end zone on fourth down ended the Pioneers' drive.

Montclair State took back possession after the failed fourth-down attempt by WP, and the Red Hawks put together a 10-play, 65-yard scoring drive that ended with a six-yard pass from sophomore quarterback Tom Fischer to classmate Byron Lewin. Capozzoli's PAT handed MSU a 14-0 lead 48 seconds before halftime.

Montclair State had the ball to begin the second half, but on the second offensive play DiIorio came up with William Paterson's second interception of the night, and his 24-yard return gave the Pioneers the ball on the MSU-14. Marshall immediately put the ball in the air, and Rivera hauled in his 17th career touchdown reception to establish a new William Paterson record (16, Lance Sisco, 1975-78). Freshman Ryan Brzycki (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Catholic) nailed the extra point to make it a 14-7 game 1:04 into the third quarter.

Brzycki added to the Pioneers' score with a 23-yard field goal with 3:11 remaining in the third quarter. On the first play of the final period, with the Red Hawks facing second-and-goal from the Pioneers' six-yard line, Bovo picked off a Fischer pass in the end zone. The Pioneers ran three plays before being forced to punt. Freshman Dan DeCicco (Wayne, N.J./Wayne Hills) awaited the ball at the back of the WP end zone, but the snap sailed over his head, resulting in a safety and a 16-10 Montclair State lead with 12:39 to play.

William Paterson kicked the ball back to MSU after the safety, and on third-and-13, Bovo came up with his second interception of the quarter, racing 29 yards up the left sideline for a touchdown. Brzycki's extra point gave the Pioneers their first lead of the night, 17-16, with 10:19 remaining.

Fischer kept the Red Hawks' next drive going, when on fourth-and-one on the Pioneer 37-yard line, he bounced a broken play outside and picked up two yards. Seven plays later, Jeff Bliss scored from two yards out, and after two penalties during the extra-point tries, Fischer found Lewin for the two points and a 24-17 advantage with 5:25 to play.

The Pioneers responded with a 23-yard DeCicco kickoff return and 38 more yards during their next 12 plays, getting inside MSU's 25-yard line. On a third-and-seven play, Gary Knoeppel intercepted Marshall's pass to thwart the Pioneers' hopes of finding the end zone, and following a three-and-out by the MSU offense, William Paterson saw its final chance slip away when the snap was high on second-and-10 from midfield, a fumble that was recovered by the Red Hawks on the WP 22-yard line with 14 seconds remaining.

Fischer completed 13 of 33 passes for 169 yards, a touchdown and four INTs for Montclair State. Bliss gained 61 yards on 21 attempts, and Kubrak caught two passes for a team-best 49 yards. Ed Kirschenbaum led the Red Hawk defense with nine tackles (seven solo).

Montclair State owned a slight 260-200 advantage in total offense. The two teams combined for 24 penalties for 207 yards.

The Pioneers will play at Morrisville State Saturday, Oct. 10, at 12:00 p.m.