MIT Tops Becker in 23-3 Final in 2018 Season Opener

THE BASICS:

- Score: MIT 23, Becker 3

- Records: MIT (1-0); Becker (0-1)

- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Roberts Field at Steinbrenner Stadium)

- The Lead: Scoring on its first play from scrimmage just 17 seconds in, the MIT football team opened the 2018 season with a 23-3 non-conference home victory over Becker College on Friday night. The win is the first for head coach Brian Bubna, who is in his first season as the head coach after spending nine years as an assistant.


THE DIFFERENCE:

- MIT won the turnover battle on Friday night, forcing four Becker fumbles and recovering three of them. Freshman Cole Kingston (Oakland, Calif.) picked up his first career interception as well, while the Engineers turned the ball over just once.


HOW IT HAPPENED:

- MIT got on the board after Becker fumbled the opening kickoff and the Engineers recovered at the five-yard line. Junior John Robertson (Brentwood, Tenn.) barreled in on the next play for the 6-0 lead.

- The Engineers pushed the lead to 13-0 on another Robertson TD with 7:55 remaining in the period as he scored from nine yards out up the middle. MIT got into Hawks territory on a midfield reception by senior Eddy Garcia-Montes (Miami, Fla.).

- Sophomore kicker Mark Wright (Fort Worth, Texas) converted a 21-yard field goal late in the first half, followed by a 26-yard Mac Kimball field goal as time expired in the opening half for the 16-3 margin.

- The MIT lead swelled to 20 early in the third quarter as Jack Bernatchez (Belgrade, Maine) made a 21-yard TD catch up the middle, spinning into the end zone to account for the 23-3 final score.


BIG MOMENTS:

- With Becker driving late in the third, senior Tyler Wasser (Brecksville, Ohio) forced a Hawk fumble at the two-yard line that was recovered by senior Andrew DeNucci (Newton, Mass.).

- MIT turned the Hawks over on the last five possessions of the game, including two fumbles, an interception and a pair of turnovers on downs.


INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

- MIT senior Miguel Wagner (El Segundo, Calif.) finished with a career-high 118 yards that included a 56-yard run.

- Senior quarterback Udgam Goyal (Frisco, Texas) was 19-for-25 passing for 175 yards and one touchdown. Garcia-Montes was the top receiver for MIT with nine catches for 83 yards.

- For Becker, Jake McHugh completed 14-of-29 passes for 144 yards while running for 51 yards.

- Edwin Velasquez was the top receiver for the Hawks, pulling down five catches for 58 yards that included a long of 40 yards.

- Defensively, Sam Cantrell (Seattle, Wash.) led MIT with eight tackles and Tyler Ray (Suwanee, Ga.) had three pass breakups. Michael Bianco paced Becker with a game-high 17 tackles and Joseph Linnehan was also in double figures with 10 stops.


UP NEXT:

- MIT returns to action on Friday, September 8th as the Engineers travel to Curry College for a non-conference matchup beginning at 7 p.m. in Milton, Mass.


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