Offense Powers Kean Past Brockport, 40-22

BROCKPORT, N.Y. (10/17/09) - The Kean University football team had more than 550 yards of total offense and scored 30 unanswered points in defeating host The College at Brockport, 40-22, in New Jersey Athletic Conference action on Saturday afternoon.

Sophomore quarterback Thomas D'Ambrisi (Eatontown, N.J.) (pictured right) combined for 327 yards and four touchdowns on offense, as he completed 18-of-29 passes for 277 yards and three TD passes and added three carries for 50 yards, including a 42-yard touchdown run.

The balanced offensive attack had five players with at least 47 yards receiving and three players with at least 50 yards rushing, led by senior running back Jared Chunn (Tinton Falls, N.J.), who finished with 122 yards on 18 carries.

The Cougars (5-1, 5-0 NJAC) improve on their best start in school history in the conference, as they scored 30 straight points after trailing 14-10 in the second quarter to pull away for the win. 

For the Golden Eagles (2-4, 1-4 NJAC), junior linebacker Nathan Bull (Brockport, N.Y.) finished with a game-high 14 tackles and added a forced fumble. 

Trailing 14-10, the Cougars would score on five straight drives spanning the second and third quarters, including three straight possessions to open the second half. 

Senior wide receiver Derric Harris (Freehold, N.J.) would give the Cougars the lead for good as the Cougars executed the two-minute drill with a four-yard scoring run to cap the nine-play, 80-yard drive with just 43 seconds left in the second half. 

After the kickoff, the Cougars quickly forced a three-and-out, as Brockport had three straight incomplete passes and junior Sean Atkins (Perth Amboy, N.J.) (pictured left) would block and recover the ensuing punt, returning the ball to the Brockport 3-yard line with just 12 seconds remaining. 

Kean attempted one play, before settling for the 25-yard field goal by sophomore Billy Daniels (Ridgefield, N.J.) to extend the lead to 20-14 at halftime. 

In the second half, the Cougar offense continued to click as Atkins would get in on th e scoring with a pair of TD receptions and D'Ambrisi had his 42-yard touchdown run. 

After the Cougar defense forced Brockport to punt after just three plays on the first possession of the second half, the offense would need just three plays of their own to extend the lead to 26-14, as Chunn (pictured right) opened the drive with a 36-yard run and a 7-yard run, to set-up the 26-yard touchdown pass from D'Ambrisi to Atkins on a scoring drive that lasted just 79 seconds.

On Kean's next possession, Chunn would again open the drive up with big runs, this time a 19-yard run and 8-yard run to give the Cougars the ball near midfield.  Two plays later, D'Ambrisi broke a career-long 42-yard run to extend the lead to 33-14 after the Daniels extra point.

The Cougars would add one more score in the quarter, as D'Ambrisi would complete the 17-yard touchdown reception to Atkins for the 40-14 edge.  On the five-play, 75-yard scoring drive, Chunn had a 43-yard run that gave the Cougars first-and-ten at the Brockport 18-yard line. 

Brockport scored with less than three minutes remaining in the game and added the two-point conversion to close out the scoring.

In a back-and-forth first half, the Cougars got on the board first with a 30-yard field goal from Daniels with 5:26 remaining in the first quarter.  Brockport answered with a minute remaining, as senior running back Aaron Zurn (Sidney, N.Y.) scored from two-yards out to cap a 12-play, 74-yard drive for the 7-3 lead after the extra point.

The two teams traded touchdowns in the second quarter, with the Cougars scoring on a 28-yard touchdown pass from D'Ambrisi to Harris and Brockport taking their final lead of the game at 14-10 when senior quarterback Jake Graci (Farnham, N.Y.) connected with senior wide receiver Matt Newman (Unadilla, N.Y.) on a 62-yard touchdown pass. 

For the Cougars, senior running back Chris Aquino (Somerville, N.J.) had 10 carries for 93 yards and three receptions for 47 yards, while Atkins finished with three receptions for 52 yards.  Senior Alex Cade (Galloway, N.J.) had six receptions for 79 yards and junior Matt Puorro (Point Pleasant, N.J.) added four catches for 51 yards. 

Defensively, sophomore Jamahl Williams (Passaic, N.J.) had a team-high 11 tackles and junior Chris Lauda (Staten Island, N.Y.) (pictured left) intercepted his first pass of the season.  Senior linebacker Kyle Maher (Red Bank, N.J.) and sophomore defensive back Mike Mancini (Lacey Twp., N.J.) each had seven tackles. 

For Brockport, Graci completed 14-of-29 passes for 167 yards, while senior wide receiver Felipe Diaz (Farnham, N.Y.) caught nine of those completions for 77 yards.  Junior defensive lineman Chris Koehler (Hornell, N.Y.) made six tackles, including three for a loss of 12 yards. 

The Cougars return home for the next two weeks, first hosting Morrisville State College on Saturday, October 24, during Homecoming festivities.  Kick-off is set for 1 p.m.