11/3/23

SCRANTON, Pa. -- The remaining remnants of the old Northeast Football Conference will lock horns for the second time this season, when #14 Lackawanna College football travels to New York to take on Monroe College on Saturday, November 4th.  

Kickoff is scheduled for a 4:00pm ET start at the Stadium at Memorial Field in Mount Vernon, NY. Live coverage will be provided by Monroe College Athletics via their YouTube Channel HERE. There will also be live stats available to follow along with HERE. This is the second meeting of the year between the Falcons and the Mustangs. Lackawanna won the previous encounter, 41-18, back on October 7th on a rainy Saturday evening in Scranton, PA. The Falcons overcame an early 12-7 hole to score 20 straight points on their way to the victory, getting two touchdown passes from Hamas Duren (Sophomore; Sicklerville, NJ) and a defensive touchdown late in the game from Terence Folkes (Sophomore; Belleville, NJ) that sealed the deal. You can read the recap from that game HERE.

The Falcons (6-2) come into the contest after getting blasted on the road, 50-21, by now-fourth-ranked Snow College this past Saturday night in Utah. Lackawanna actually outgained the Badgers, but the majority of its offense came in the second half, long after the home squad had built a 36-0 advantage. Snow scored four straight touchdowns in the first half, sandwiching a safety in there for good measure, and returned a fumble for a touchdown on the opening possession of the second half, before Lackawanna finally got on the board. Duren threw for three second-half touchdown passes, two to Petey Tucker (Sophomore; Baltimore, MD), as the Falcons fought to try to make things look a little better on the scoreboard. Avohn Cross (Sophomore; Philadelphia, PA) caught a team-high five balls for 77 yards, while Terrez Worthy (Sophomore; Salisbury, MD) ran for 73 yards on 14 carries, snapping a four-game streak where he went for 100 yards or more on the ground. Saint McLeod (Sophomore; Philadelphia, PA) had 15 tackles, 13 of which were assisted, to lead the team, while Nyair Graham (First Year; Camden, NJ) had a team-best six solo tackles and 3.5 tackles-for-loss. You can read the recap HERE.

Monroe (6-2) enters the game receiving votes just outside of the NJCAA Top 15 this week. The Mustangs battled the elements last weekend in a road game at Hocking College, overcoming a 7-0 halftime deficit to defeat the Hawks, 13-7, on Saturday afternoon in Nelsonville. Mason Boothe threw for 279 yards and two touchdowns, both coming in the third quarter, as Monroe overcame a poor performance on third down, going just 2-for-12. Hocking actually converted 6-for-14 on third down, but the Hawks had just 34 yards rushing and 211 yards total in offense. Monroe had 307 yards total, and Rashawn Reid was a favorite target for Boothe, hauling in five catches for 80 yards and a score. Nareece Wright led the Mustangs on defense, putting up seven total tackles and 1.5 tackles-for-loss. 

This will be the 13th all-time meeting between the two programs. Lackawanna leads the series 9-3, and has won the last three-in-a-row, including the 41-18 victory earlier this season. Monroe last beat Lackawanna in 2021, in a 49-48 road win in overtime. You have to go back to 2013 to find the last time the Mustangs beat the Falcons at home, that game a 35-33 victory for Monroe. Lackawanna has won eight of the last nine games against their rivals. 

You can read the full games notes for this week's contest HERE.

Lackawanna College is set to wrap its regular season schedule next Saturday, November 11th, when the Falcons host the #11 Georgia Military College Bulldogs for the home finale. The game is set for a 1:00pm ET kickoff from PenFed Field at Scranton Memorial Stadium, and could potentially decide the postseason bowl fate for either school.