Plymouth State wins thriller against Nichols

Plymouth, N.H. - Dustin Mathews scored a game-winning overtime touchdown from the one-yard line Saturday afternoon, propelling Plymouth State past Nichols College in the annual homecoming game, 20-14 in NEFC Boyd Division play at Currier Field.

The Panthers came out and played hard, inspiring football in front of a packed crowd during homecoming weekend. Mathews' winning touchdown came on the Panther's first possession of the overtime, following an interception by Josh Morgan on Nichols' first chance. PSU used an 11-yard pass from senior quarterback Jake Tyler to Mathews, followed by an 11-yard rush by Andrew Foglia to set up the game-winning play.

The Panthers seemed primed to win the game outright, but the Bison had other plans. Junior quarterback Jacob Shoup launched a 41-yard touchdown to Dylan Rimski with 2:23 remaining in the 4^th tying the game at 14, and rousing the Nichols bench and fan base that made the trip from Dudley, Mass. Plymouth had broken the 7-7 stand-still midway through the 4^th with a 2 yard touchdown run by Tyler.

Although the Panthers were outgained in total yards 355-164, the defense showed up when it needed to, and had a number of great performances. Sophomore Chris Smith had five tackles and an interception while senior Louis Montegari added eight tackles and a fumble recovery. The star, though, was senior Josh Morgan, who had 12 tackles, a fumble recovery, and interception, earning him the NEFC defensive player of the week award.

The win improved Plymouth State's record to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in the NEFC, while Nichols dropped to 0-5 and 1-2. Both teams will play NEFC action next Saturday as the Panthers will travel to MIT and Nichols will visit Endicott.