Owls' Football To Host UMD at Homecoming

The Owls (0-5, 0-3 MASCAC) enter the game still looking for the first win of the 2021 campaign, and come in rested off of the bye week.   UMass Dartmouth comes into the game with a 4-2 overall record and a 2-2 record in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.

Last Week:  Umass Dartmouth topped Mass Maritime 26-10 behind 198 yards passing from quarterback Dante Aviles-Santos, and 114 all-purpose yards from running back Luis Gonzalez, who rushed for 61 yards on 18 carries, and caught six passes for 53 yards and a touchdown.  Josh Lacerte anchored the defensive effort with five tackles and a pair of sacks.   While the Owls had the bye last weekend, Westfield also faced MMA in their last game, falling 16-8 to the Buccaneers.  Owls QB Peyton Capizzi had a solid game for the Owls with 230 yards and a touchdown passing.  First-year WR Danny Farrell caught five passes for 76 yards, and OT Thomas rushed 16 times for 57 yards.

OWLS ON OFFENSE:  Capizzi sparked the Owls late against MMA, leading one scoring drive, and leading another down the field late in regulation.  For the season, he has completed 38 of 81 passes for 431 yards, and has a pair of rushing touchdowns as well.   Farrell has 12 catches for 147 yards, and Anthony Cintron has been a deep threat with five catches for 83 yards.  Leading receiver Tod Holloway Jr. has missed time due to an injury.  Thomas leads Westfield with 68 carries for 218 yards.

OWLS ON DEFENSE:  Junior linebacker Cameron Danahy continues to lead the Owls in tackles, with 44 stops this season.  Sophomore defensive back Travis Dozier Jr. has four of the Owls five interceptions this season, and leads the MASCAC in that category.  Senior defensive lineman Peter Spinale leads the team with 2.5 sacks, and linemate David White has a team best five tackles for a loss of yardage.

OWLS SPECIAL TEAMS: Senior Shane Clark converted the Owls two point try against Mass Maritime with the old-fashioned 'swinging gate' play.   Clark (31.5 ypp) also splits punting duties with Owen Thompson (27.1 ypp). Farrell and Christian Julian have handled kickoffs for the Owls.

CORSAIRS ON OFFENSE: Quarterback Aviles-Santos has triggered the UMD offense, completing nearly 50 percent of his passes for 1,161 yards and 13 TD's against just two interceptions, and ranks second in the league in passing efficiency.  In the backfield, Gonzalez and Marvens Jean split the majority of the workload, and rank 2-3 in the league in yards per game.  Gonzalez carries for 75 yards per outing with Jean adding 63.  Douglas Machado tops the receiving corps with 22 catches for 488 yards and six touchdowns.

CORSAIRS ON DEFENSE: Senior DB JP Mason leads the Corsairs with 49 tackles. Junior DL Josh Lacerte leads the team with four sacks, while first-year linebacker Sam Alicea has three. Sophomore defensive back Logan Chappell has three interceptions to lead the team.

CORSAIRS ON SPECIAL TEAMS:  Mat Gacioch has handled punts for the Corsairs and holds a 34 yard-per punt average.  Douglas Chicca has kicked nine extra points, but UMass-Dartmouth has not attempted a field goal all season.

HALL OF FAME:   Westfield State athletics hosted it's 24^th Athletic Hall of Fame Ceremony on Friday night.  Inductees included retired Athletic Director Ken Magarian '71, men's soccer standouts Dennis Dugas '76 and Chris Streeter '98, high jump national champion Marlee-Berg Haryasz '09, volleyball hitter Lindsay (Skaret) Gundersen '07, and Chris Lapointe '04, who quarterbacked the football team to a perfect 10-0 regular season record and an NCAA Playoff bid in 2001.  Attending members of the Hall of Fame Class will be recognized on the field at halftime.

VIDEO COVERAGE:  The game is live streamed on the WestfieldStateOwls.com website, as well as via the MASCAC.TV app for ROKU and AppleTV devices.  Students Matt Motyka '22, Dan Mastromatteo '22, and Nick Malouin '23 have coverage of the game.  Live state for the game are also available at WestfieldStateOwls.com