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WAYNE, N.J. – A furious fourth-quarter rally pulled William Paterson (2-4, 0-4 NJAC) to within five points with 6:15 to play, but Kean (4-2, 4-0 NJAC) came up with a late score for a 45-33 victory Oct. 13 at Wightman Stadium.

Trailing 38-14 to begin the fourth quarter, junior quarterback Ryan Gresik (Newton, N.J./Newton) found senior tailback Dawys German (North Arlington, N.J./North Arlington) for a 15-yard completion on fourth-and-five at the Kean-17, and three plays later German cleared the pile for a one-yard touchdown.  WP elected to go for two, but when senior tight end Joseph Cordato (Bayonne, N.J./Bayonne) went to the ground on the right side of the end zone and had no chance to catch the ball, the official ruled it incidental contact, and the score held at 38-20 with 13:12 to play.

On the Cougars' third offensive play of the next possession, quarterback Chris Bailoni was hit as he let go of the ball and sophomore linebacker Mike Fraioli (Mohegan Lake, N.Y./Lakeland) secured his first career interception, returning it 52 yards for a score.  Sophomore Robert Sinegra (Wharton, N.J./Morris Knolls) tacked on the extra point to make it a 38-27 margin with 12:08 on the clock.

The WP defense forced a three-and-out, but German's second effort wasn't enough to pick up the first down on fourth-and-one at the Kean 34-yard line.  Following a delay of game that backed Kean up to its own 37-yard line and made it a third-and-seven situation, senior defensive end James Grande (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by the Sea) batted Bailoni's pass straight up in the air and senior bandit Stephen Bovo, Jr. (Dunellen, N.J./Dunellen) was able to get his hands under the ball before it hit the ground, an interception that handed William Paterson the ball back at the KU-35.

A four-yard completion, coupled with a 15-yard roughing the passer penalty, got the WP drive started, and junior wide receiver Howard Davis (Franklin Park, N.J./Franklin) finished the possession when he sliced his way into the end zone for a 10-yard score.  The Pioneers again looked for Cordato in the right flat, but the two-point attempt was no good, and WP trailed 38-33 with 6:15 remaining.

Now a one-possession game, Kean responded with a seven-play, 75-yard scoring drive.  Bailoni kept the chains moving with an 18-yard completion to Sean McKee on third-and-three, and when the quarterback turned and rolled to his left on a later second-and-seven play, he found himself all alone, covering the final 36 yards for a touchdown.  Bill Cullen's PAT gave Kean a 45-33 lead with 2:19 left.

Sophomore Isaac Jlaka's (Phillipsburg, N.J./Phillipsburg) fumble of the ensuing kickoff ended the Pioneers' comeback hopes, as the Cougars were able to run out the remainder of the clock.

Gresik finished 20-for-30 for 281 yards and two touchdowns, and gained a team-leading 38 yards on the ground while scoring once on 14 carries.  German surpassed the 2,000-yard mark for his career (2,012) with 10 attempts for 15 yards and a score.  Junior wide receiver Mick Paye (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional) caught six passes for 66 yards, and classmate Brian Winfield (Newton, N.J./Newton) gained 96 yards on four receptions.   Senior wide receiver Alex Price (Newton, N.J./Newton) hauled in three passes for 76 yards.

Senior free safety Javon Hodges (Parlin, N.J./Sayreville War Memorial) and senior bandit German Decena (Union City, N.J./Emerson) each made 10 tackles.  Junior linebacker David Zurla (Rutherford, N.J./Rutherford) finished with nine stops, and junior cornerback Andre Snead (Atlantic City, N.J./Atlantic City) had seven tackles.

The Pioneers put themselves on the scoreboard first when Gresik threw over the top of the coverage to Price, who raced 60 yards to hand WP a 7-0 edge 5:10 into the game.  Kean answered with a 25-yard Darius Kinney run, leveling the score at 7-7 with 25.9 seconds remaining in the first quarter.

A 20-yard Bailoni-to-Deandre Fowlkes TD made it a 14-7 Cougar advantage at the 11:30 mark of the second period, and after a William Paterson punt, Bailoni found Haynes for a five-yard score (21-7, 5:56).  Cullen tacked on a 39-yard field goal with 1:14 remaining, and Kean entered halftime with a 24-7 lead.

WP began the second half with a 33-yard completion by Gresik to Winfield, and facing second-and-goal from the Cougar-12, German's backside block freed Gresik to sprint to the right pylon for the Pioneers' second touchdown of the afternoon.  Sinegra's extra point was good, making it a 24-14 score with 11:42 on the clock.

Bailoni connected with Louis Haynes on the left sideline, and he out-sprinted the Pioneer defense for a 76-yard score at the 8:12 mark of the third quarter (31-14).  Another long completion, this one for 57 yards to Fowlkes, handed the Cougars a 38-14 edge with 4:53 remaining in the third.

Bailoni was 13-for-21 for 236 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions.  Kinney gained 136 yards on 15 carries, scoring once, and Fowlkes caught nine passes for 126 yards and two scores.  Haynes gained 88 yards on three receptions, finding the end zone twice.

Junior defensive back Justin McLendon paced the Kean defense with eight tackles, followed by senior defensive back Chris VanFechtman and junior defensive lineman Elijah Drayton with seven stops apiece.

William Paterson will play at Morrisville State Saturday, Oct. 20, at 12:00 p.m.

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