Cougars Stomp King's 37-0 to Capture ECAC Bowl

UNION, N.J. - (11/18/06) Kean University's sophomore Durell Dukes (Elizabeth, N.J.) had 171 yards receiving, including two TD's, while also gaining 84 yards on the ground to lead the Cougars to a convincing 37-0 victory over King's College this afternoon in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Southeast Bowl Championship. With the win, the Cougars finished with its best record in 12 years with a 7-4 mark, while the Lions suffer their fifth loss of the season and drop to 6-5. The seven wins for the Cougars are the most for the program since 1994 when they went 7-2-1 and captured their only other ECAC Championship. The shutout for the Cougars was their fist since a 3-0 victory over Thiel College to start the 2001 season.

For Dukes' effort he was named the ECAC Most Outstanding Player.

Kean took the opening kick and proceeded to march 69-yards on six plays and they capped the drive with a three yard touchdown run by Anthony Stewart (Atlantic City, N.J.). Early in the second quarter, junior quarterback A.J. Roque (Matawan, N.J.) hit Dukes with a 44-yard TD pass to push the lead to 14-0. Following an Aahron Kiett (Atlantic City, N.J.) interception, the Cougars converted the turnover into seven points when Roque ran it in from the one yard line to push the advantage to 21-0. Just before the half, KU had a perfect two minute drill as they went 41-yards in just over a minute to set up a 32-yard Kevin Trump (Shawnee, N.J.) field goal.

After a scoreless third quarter, Kean added to its lead when Roque hit senior tight end Agim Bajramovic (Staten Island, N.Y.) for a 12-yard score. The touchdown was the first career score for Bajramovic. Later in the quarter Roque hit Dukes on a short pass, which he turned into a 70-yard touchdown.

Kean dominated statistically in the game out gaining the Lions 505 to 163. The 171 yards receiving by Dukes was the third highest in school history. Roque completed just 8-of-14 passes for 225 yards. Freshman Jared Chunn (Eatontown, N.J.) had 53 yards rushing on seven carries; Stewart finished the game with 10 carries for 51 yards, while Brian Williams (Pleasantville, N.J.) added 46 yards on nine carries.

For King's, starting QB Jeff Searfass (Bethlehem, Pa.) was 3-for-7 for 25 yards before getting injured in the second quarter, backup Nick Strom (Rivertown, N.J.) completed 5-of-9 passes for 63 yards. On the ground, John Ortiz (Philadelphia, Pa.) led the Lions with 13 carries for 40 yards.

Defensively for the Cougars, senior William Parks (Newark, N.J.) made nine solo tackles, including two sacks. Sophomore Jake Pew (Sussex, N.J.) made seven stops, while George Williams (Matawan, N.J) added seven tackles and one pass defended.

For the Lions, Matt McGovern (Churchville, Pa.) was a standout with 10 tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery. Matt Little (Ballston Spa, N.Y.) picked up a seven tackles, while Tom Tulaney (Clarks Summit, Pa.) had seven stops in the loss.