BRIDGEWATER, Mass. - - The Bridgewater State College football team captured the 30th Annual Cranberry Bowl with a 34-7 victory over Mass. Maritime Academy this afternoon at Swenson Field in Bridgewater.
Bridgewater State is now 22-7-1 in the Cranberry Bowl series which dates back to 1979. The Bears have won the prestigious Cranberry Scoop 12 straight times and 20 of the last 21 years.
Junior running back Jeff Creeden (Mansfield, MA) was named the recipient of the Lee Harrington Trophy as the game's most valuable player. Creeden scored three touchdowns and rushed for 54 yards on 12 carries in the win.
Bridgewater opened the scoring less than three minutes into the game as junior cornerback Andrae Murphy (Pembroke Pines, FL) intercepted a pass at the BSC 35-yard line and rambled 65 yards for the opening score. Junior linebacker Mike Moitoza (Taunton, MA) then recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff to give BSC the ball at the MMA 32-yard line. Eight plays later, Creeden punched it in on fourth and goal from the one to extend the lead to 14-0.
That would be just the beginning of a turnover-plagued first half as the teams would combine for six turnovers over the first 30 minutes of play. The Bears would fumble the ball away on their next two possessions with the second fumble leading to Mass. Maritime's only score of the game.
Taking over at the BSC 48, the Buccaneers strung together a 13-play drive capped off by a one-yard touchdown plunge by freshman quarterback Nick Montalto (South Yarmouth, MA). The scoring play came at the 11:10 mark of the second quarter.
Neither team would threaten to score the remainder of the second quarter, thanks in part to three consecutive turnovers, as the teams headed to the locker room with Bridgewater leading 14-7.
Bridgewater took control of game right out of the intermission, On the opening drive of the third quarter, the Bears marched 69 yards on nine plays with Creeden finding the end zone once again from a yard out. BSC would also score on their next two possessions to put the game out of reach. Creeden scored on a five-yard TD run to cap off a nine-play, 88-yard drive. Sophomore quarterback Jessy Resende (Brockton, MA) then connected with junior wideout Jesse Teixeira (Taunton, MA) on a 63-yard touchdown strike to give BSC the 34-7 advantage.
After rushing for 134 yards in the first half and outgaining the Bears in total offense by a margin of 134-80, Mass. Maritime managed just 73 total yards in the final two quarters. BSC amassed 159 yards on the ground in the second half and 299 yards of offense.
A big story of the game was the running of sophomore back Jared Ulak (Rehoboth, MA). After the Bears' leading rusher Bruce Burley (Mansfield, MA) went down with an injury early in the first quarter, Ulak came on to rush for a career-high 102 yards on 16 carries.
Senior quarterback Tyler D'Ambra (Mansfield, MA) completed 5-of-9 passes for 108 yards, while Resende rushed for 54 yards to go along with his 63-yard TD pass to Teixeira. Senior receiver David Wall (Braintree, MA) hauled in three passes for 84 yards.
BSC's defense was outstanding all game long. Senior defensive tackle Mohammed Kanu (Randolph, MA) and junior defensive end Sean Larkin (Pembroke, MA) led the way with seven tackles apiece, while junior linebacker Casey Florence (Bridgewater, MA) added six solo stops.
Senior cornerback John Bascon (Bridgewater, MA) notched his second interception of the season and 13th of his career to go along with three pass breakups and three solo tackles.
Offensively for the Buccaneers, freshman running back Matt White (Westwood, MA) rushed for 92 yards on 12 carries. Montalto finished with 52 yards on the ground to go along with his touchdown. The Buccaneer passing game was ineffective however with just 45 yards in the air and a pair of interceptions.
Junior defensive back Jim Erlwein (Livingston Manor, NY) led all players with 12 tackles, all of them unassisted. Erlwein also recorded a tackle for loss and forced a fumble. Junior defensive back Kevin McCarthy (Tewksbury, MA) finished with seven tackles (five solo), forced a fumble and also picked off a pass.
BSC ends the 2008 season with a record of 7-3 and a 6-1 mark in the New England Football Conference (NEFC) Bogan Division. The Bears finished in a tie for first place in the division along with Maine Maritime Academy. Maine Maritime, however, will represent the Bogan Division in the NEFC Championship Game next Saturday due to the head-to head tie-breaker. Maine defeated BSC earlier this season, 41-31.
Mass. Maritime finishes the 2008 campaign with an overall record of 0-10 including an 0-7 mark in divisional play