MILTON, Mass. - Junior Ryan Van De Giesen (North Attleboro, Mass.) passed for three touchdowns and ran for another Saturday afternoon, leading Curry College to an easy 42-14 win against visiting Plymouth State University in a battle of unbeaten New England Football Conference Boyd Division teams.

            The Colonels put the game away early, snapping a 7-7 first-quarter tie with five more first-half touchdowns and a 42-7 lead at intermission.  Curry won its 27th NEFC game in a row and collected its 26th consecutive home victory. The Colonels also snapped the Panthers' eight-game winning streak, handing PSU its first loss of the season (6-1, 4-1 NEFC Boyd).

            Curry (8-0, 5-0 NEFC Boyd) will travel to Nichols College next Saturday with the opportunity to clinch its fifth-consecutive Boyd Division title and berth in the NEFC Championship game.

            Both teams found the end zone on their first drives. The Colonels took a 7-0 lead after a 5-yard run by junior Steve DiFabio (Salem, N.H.). Plymouth State answered right back with a 65-yard drive that was capped off with a 3-yard run by junior quarterback John DeMarco (Milford, N.H.)

            Curry then scored touchdowns on five of its next six possessions to end the half. The first quarter featured a 4-yard scoring pass from Van De Giesen to junior Brian Taylor (North Chelmsford, Mass.), followed by a 61-yard touchdown scamper by sophomore Jamaal Woods (Malden, Mass.).

            The second frame scoring consisted of a 35-yard run by Van De Giesen, a 26-yard touchdown reception by sophomore Jon Rodriguez (Leominster, Mass.) and a 4-yard scoring catch by senior Felix Borukhov (Newton, Mass.), who surpassed his own school record set a year ago by hauling in his 10th touchdown reception on the season.

            A much quieter second half ensued, with just one touchdown between the two teams. Plymouth State controlled the ball for 22 of the game's final 30 minutes but put nothing more on the scoreboard than a third-quarter 5-yard touchdown run by senior Jeff Mack (Milford, N.H.)

            Curry out-gained the Panthers, 423-252, committing no turnovers while Plymouth State suffered a pair of costly interceptions in the first half. For the Colonels, Van De Giesen completed 17 of 26 pass attempts for 166 yards. He also rushed five times for 82 yards. Game-high rushing honors went to Woods, who carried the ball 10 times for 110 yards. Taylor led all receivers with eight catches for 74 yards. Plymouth State's ground game was led by Mack, who ran 14 times for 62 yards. DeMarco completed 4-of-12 pass attempts for 50 yards and rushed 18 times for 57 yards.

            On defense, Curry was paced by senior captain Tom Pinto (Plymouth, Mass.), who shared game-high tackling honors with 10 hits (8 solo), and sophomore Patrick Fitzpatrick (South Boston, Mass.), who collected a career-high nine tackles (all solo). The Panthers were led by junior Mike Lannon (Sharon, Mass.) with 10 tackles (6 solo).

            While the Colonels set their sights on another Boyd Division crown next Saturday at Nichols, Plymouth State will look to rebound with a 1:00 p.m. home contest against MIT.

(Courtesy of Curry Sports Information)

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