BY ANDREW PENACHO // NOV. 16, 2016 //

The Colonels wrapped up the 2015 football season with a 26-24 win over NEFC rival MIT last Saturday at Walter M. Katz Field, giving the team a senior day to remember.

The Engineers were geared toward defeating Curry in back-to-back years, which hasn’t happened since the 1996 and 1997 seasons. Fortunately for the Colonels, they were on the better side of the 7 lead changes in the game.

Curry started the game with a scoring drive on their first possession. The ten-play, 56-yard drive was capped off by a 2-yard rushing TD by sophomore quarterback, Alex Corvese. The extra point attempt was missed by freshman kicker Mark Mrozek, leaving the Colonels’ lead at 6-0.

The Engineers responded with an opening TD drive of their own after senior quarterback Danny Callahan found his man, senior wide receiver Karson Ota, in the end zone. The Engineers took a 7-6 lead with a successful extra point kick.

The Engineers had a chance to gain insurance in the second quarter, until they were stopped by Curry on a fourth down conversion attempt. The Colonels drove quickly, and Corvese was able to get his first TD through the air when he connected with junior wide out Anthony Nastasi for a 22 yard TD, giving Curry a 13-7 lead.

The Curry lead was short lived, as it took M.I.T less than four minutes to respond with a 61-yard TD drive. The score came on a three-yard, goal line run by freshman Adis Ojeda. The young man had quite a game, averaging 5 yards per carry with 154 rushing yards and a TD.

For the second time in the half, MIT looked to pull away, but again Curry’s defense had an answer. And that answer was senior safety Michael Morrison.

Callahan dropped back from his own 40, and went deep down the field to what seemed to be a wide open receiver, however, Morrison appeared to just throw his hands up and snag it away for his first interception of the year.

“I saw the receiver run down the field freely,” Morrison said, “so I made the decision to come off my guy. As the ball was in the air, I thought just to swat it down, but I got close enough to snatch it out of the air.”

After the turnover, the Colonels followed with a 73-yard scoring drive to end the half with a 20-14 lead.

Curry was held scoreless in the third quarter, while MIT had a single scoring drive with a one-yard rushing touchdown by sophomore running back, Connor Hanlon, giving the Engineers a 21-20 lead going into the Fourth.

The final quarter saw its final touchdown in the first 46 seconds, when Corvese threw his second passing TD to junior Dean Anderson, giving Curry the 26-21 lead.

MIT was able to get a 26-yard field goal by junior kicker Tucker Cheyne leaving Curry with only a two-point lead. But that was all the Colonels needed to get the win, 26-24.

With the win, Curry finished the year with an overall record of 4-6, and a 3-4 NEFC record, leaving them fifth in the NEFC for the 2015 season.

History in the Making: Curry is now 18-6 all-time versus MIT. In the 21st century the Colonels haven’t been nice to the Engineers, only allowing one loss to M.I.T.   

Bandini Confident: For head coach Skip Bandini, this marks his tenth season as head coach for the Colonels. He now improves to 69-38. “This team is a lot better than we get credit for,” Bandini said. Bandini went on to state that if not for a quadruple overtime loss to Endicott and a one-point loss to Maine Maritime, Curry would have had a chance for an NCAA tournament bid.

Bright Future: The future looks bright for Curry. The football program will only lose eight players to graduation. The 2016 season roster will be littered with upper classmen, with 18 seniors and 21 juniors coming back.