Bridgewater State Blanks Fitchburg State, 42-0

Bizzotto leads all players with a game-high ten tackles

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. (October 22, 2011) – Sophomore quarterback Mike McCarthy (Edgartown, Mass.) rushed for two touchdowns and passed for a score as the Bridgewater State Bears blanked the Falcons, 42-0 in New England Football Conference action this afternoon.

The Bears, winners of three straight games, improve to 5-2 on the season and 3-2 in the NEFC Bogan Division, while the Falcons slip to 2-6 overall and 1-4 in the Bogan.

McCarthy, who rushed for touchdowns of eight and six yards, opened the scoring on the Bears' first possession of the game as he hooked up with junior wideout Jake Scott (Somerset, Mass.) on a 36-yard touchdown pass.  Bridgewater made it a 14-0 game later in the quarter as junior running back Ben Desmarais (South Hadley, Mass.) capped off a nine-play, 51-yard drive with a one-yard TD plunge.  The teams would head into the intermission with BSU holding the 14-point lead.

Bridgewater also scored on the first possession of the second half as McCarthy pounded it in from eight yards out to complete a nine-play, 63-yard drive.  Senior defensive tackle Mike Nazzaro (Boxford, Mass.) made it 28-0 in favor of the Bears later in the third quarter as he returned an interception 15 yards for a touchdown.

McCarthy's six-yard run in the fourth quarter and a five-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Jon Criscuolo (Guilford, Conn.) to sophomore receiver Tim Nutter (Haverhill, Mass.) capped off the scoring for BSU.

For the day, McCarthy completed 6-of-11 passes for 98 yards and added another 48 on the ground.  The Bridgewater passers combined to throw for 237 yards, while the Bears rushed for 211 for a total of 448 yards of offense.

The Bridgewater State defense was dominating throughout day, holding Fitchburg State to just 44 yards of total offense. Sophomore defensive end Tate Doehler (Lakeville, Mass.) led the Bears with seven tackles including a pair of sacks and 4.5 TFL's.  As a team, Bridgewater recorded five sacks in the contest as well 13 tackles for loss. 

Senior linebacker Anthony Bizzotto (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) led all players with a game-high ten tackles, while junior defensive lineman Jesus Moore (Lawrence, Mass./Lawrence) tallied six stops, including 3.5 TFL's.

Senior punter Lenny Masciangioli (Leominster, Mass./Leominster) had a busy day for the Falcons, averaging nearly 36 yards on 11 punts, including a long of 56 yards.

Fitchburg State (2-5, 1-4 NEFC) will be back in action next weekend as it hosts Worcester State at 1:30 p.m. Bridgewater (5-2, 3-2 NEFC) will visit Maine Maritime next Saturday at 12 p.m.