McMasters Named to MASCAC All-Conference Team

Worcester, MA- Worcester State Football had one named to the MASCAC All-Conference team voted on by the conference coaches at the end of the season. Senior John McMasters III (Raynham, MA) was selected to the All-Conference second team. McMasters ended the season with 60 solo tackles, 46 assisted for 106 total and two interceptions on the season as a linebackers.

UMass Dartmouth's Dante Aviles-Santos and Fitchburg State's Cameron Monette are the 2024  MASCAC Football Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year and headline the 2024 MASCAC All-Conference  teams as voted on by the coaches from around the league. 

Aviles-Santos, a senior quarterback from Cumberland, R.I., earns his third straight Offensive Player of the Year after earning the title in 2022 and 2023. He was also MASCAC Rookie of the Year in 2021. Aviles-Santos was once  again a dominant force for the Corsairs who saw them win their third straight MASCAC title with a 10-0 record. At  the conclusion of the regular season, he was first in the MASCAC in passing yards per game with 246.2 and total  passing yards at 2,462 while collecting the most passing touchdowns with 38. He registered a 179.8 pass efficiency  while only throwing four interceptions over the 10 contests. His passing touchdowns are currently the fifth most  in Division III. In the win over Worcester State, he threw for six touchdowns on 26-of-32 passes (81.3 percent)  with 342 yards on the day. This also marks his fourth time earning a spot on the MASCAC All-Conference squad. 

Taking home the 2024 MASCAC Defensive Player of the Year honors is Cameron Monette of Fitchburg State.  The senior defensive linemen from Winchendon, Mass., closed out the regular season with the most sacks in the  league with 6.5 with also the most sack yards at 51. He recovered two fumbles while recording 70 tackles (7.0 per  game) with 33 being solo. In the Falcons win over VT State-Castleton, he had seven solo tackles and two assisted  along with 1.5 sacks for a loss of 17 yards and 2.5 tackles for a loss of 19 yards.  

Tyler Gmyr of UMass Dartmouth is the 2024 MASCAC Offensive Lineman of the Year honoree. The senior tackle  from New London, Conn., helped the team finish first in the conference in several categories, including scoring  (54.2 points per game), yards per game (515.3), total passing yards (2,635) and passing yards per game (263.5).  He only allowed one sack; nationally he's part of an offensive line that ranks 8th in Division III in rushing offense  (251.8), third in scoring offense, sixth in total offense and fourth in fewest sacks allowed (0.50). 

Earning 2024 MASCAC Offensive Rookie of the Year honors is Zy'kie Askew from Bridgewater State The freshman  wide receiver from Middletown, Conn. finished his first season with the Bears with 381 yards and a touchdown  over 10 games. He averaged 5.4 yards per rush over his 71 chances. His best game of the season came in the  win over Worcester State where he had 104 yards on two rushes with a score.  

Rounding out the major award winners are Robbie Engel of Plymouth State and Andrew Lovell of Westfield State,  the 2024 MASCAC Defensive Rookie of the Year. Engel, freshman defensive back from Topsfield, Mass., finished  his first year with the Panthers with 46 tackles, including 22 solo while also recovering a fumble. His top game of  the season with in the win over Bridgewater State, where he had six solo and seven assisted tackles. For Westfield  State, Lovell registered 42 tackles, 20 solo with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries on the year. He earned  Rookie of the Week honors after recording an interception and recovering two fumbles in the game against VT  State-Castleton earlier this season. 

After leading the Corsairs to their third straight MASCAC title, a 10-0 overall and 9-0 league record and a spot in  the NCAA Tournament, Josh Sylvester was voted the 2024 BSN Sports Coach of the Year. 

2024 MASCAC FOOTBALL ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS

FIRST TEAM-DEFENSE

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown

Brandon Medeiros, Bridgewater State Junior Defensive Back Somerset, Mass.

Shane Meerbott, UMass Dartmouth Senior Defensive Back Cumberland, R.I.

Logan Chappell, UMass Dartmouth Senior Defensive Back Griswold, Conn.

Tyon Grimes, WestConn Junior Defensive Back Hempstead, N.Y.

Jackson Wellman, UMass Dartmouth Senior Inside Linebacker Taunton, Mass.

Kevin McDonough, VT State-Castleton Senior Inside Linebacker Concord, Mass.

Jackson Mahoney, Mass. Maritime Sophomore Outside Linebacker Falmouth, Mass.

Mike Henricksen, UMass Dartmouth Senior Outside Linebacker Lakeville, Mass.

Nicolas Canales, Bridgewater State Junior Defensive Line Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y.

Cameron Monette, Fitchburg State Senior Defensive Line Winchendon, Mass.

Sam Alicea, UMass Dartmouth Senior Defensive Line Providence, R.I.

Cade Nelson, Westfield State Senior Defensive Line Shrewsbury, Mass.

Shane Drake, Bridgewater State Senior Punter Franklin, Mass.

FIRST TEAM-OFFENSE

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown

Jack Claeys, Plymouth State Sophomore Center Melrose, Mass.

Ian Curvelo, Mass. Maritime Senior Guard New Bedford, Mass.

Kolby Stockwell, UMass Dartmouth Senior Guard Harrisville, R.I.

Tyler Gymr, UMass Dartmouth Senior Tackle New London, Conn.

Patrick Adams, WestConn Senior Tackle Seldon, N.Y.

Jalen Kopecky, UMass Dartmouth Senior Tight End Warren, R.I.

Angel Sanchez, UMass Dartmouth Senior Wide Receiver Providence, R.I.

Julian Ferguson, WestConn Senior Wide Receiver Enfield, Conn.

Willie Lombard, Plymouth State Senior Running Back Bridgewater, Mass.

Jalyn Aponte, UMass Dartmouth Senior Running Back Boston, Mass.

Dylan Disabella, Westfield State Senior Full Back Granby, Conn.

Dante Aviles-Santos, UMass Dartmouth Senior Quarterback Cumberland, R.I.

Joey Naso, Bridgewater State Junior Place-Kicker Hopewell Junction, N.Y.

Willie Lombard, Plymouth State Senior Return Specialist Bridgewater, Mass.

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Dante Aviles-Santos, UMass Dartmouth Senior Quarterback Cumberland, R.I.

OFFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE YEAR

Tyler Gymr, UMass Dartmouth Senior Tackle New London, Conn.

OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Zy'kie Askew, Bridgewater State Freshman Running Back Middletown, Conn.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Cameron Monette, Fitchburg State Senior Defensive Line Winchendon, Mass.

DEFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

Robbie Engel, Plymouth State Freshman Defensive Back Topsfield, Mass.

Andrew Lovell, Westfield State Freshman Defensive Back Barnstable, Mass.

BSN SPORTS COACH OF THE YEAR

Josh Sylvester, UMass Dartmouth

SECOND TEAM-DEFENSE

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown

Elijah Zaire McKnight, Fitchburg State Senior Defensive Back Tracy, Calif.

Demetri Boozer, Mass. Maritime Senior Defensive Back McDonough, Ga.

Jonathan Brightman, UMass Dartmouth Senior Defensive Back Wareham, Mass.

Xavier Lopes, UMass Dartmouth Junior Defensive Back Lorain, Ohio

Mileeq Green, WestConn Senior Defensive Back Trumbull, Conn.

Evan Wilson, Plymouth State Senior Inside Linebacker Derry, N.H.

John McMasters III, Worcester State Senior Inside Linebacker Raynham, Mass.

Tyler Buxton, VT State-Castleton Senior Outside Linebacker Middlebury, Vt.

Justin Ingebrigtsen, WestConn Junior Outside Linebacker Oyster Bay, N.Y.

Korrey Barron, Framingham State Freshman Defensive Line Rockwell, Texas

Mac Kromenhoek, Mass. Maritime Junior Defensive Line Savannah, Ga.

Josh Lacerte, UMass Dartmouth Graduate Defensive Line Westerly, R.I.

Kile Jackson, WestConn Senior Defensive Line Dansbury, Conn

Makoto Uchikawa, Framingham State Freshman Punter Nagoya, Japan

SECOND TEAM-OFFENSE

Player/Institution Class Position Hometown

Anton Vasquez, Bridgewater State Senior Center Nahant, Mass.

Michael Garafola, Bridgewater State Senior Guard Bradford, R.I.

Mason Phuong, WestConn Senior Guard Danbury, Conn.

Bryant Bowman, Framingham State Senior Tackle Falmouth, Mass.

Patrick Adams, WestConn Senior Tackle Seldon, N.Y.

Jacob Morris, Plymouth State Sophomore Tight End Kennebunk, Maine

Elijah Nichols, Framingham State Senior Wide Receiver Burlington Township, N.J.

Dae'Shawn Allen, WestConn Sophomore Wide Receiver White Plains, N.Y.

Trevor Nunes, Bridgewater State Senior Running Back E. Falmouth, Mass.

Kamryn Holmes, WestConn Senior Running Back Branford, Conn.

Matthew Rinta, Bridgewater State Senior Full Back W. Wareham, Mass.

Braden Lynn, Plymouth State Senior Quarterback Mount Vernon, N.Y.

Anthony Weidtman, WestConn Senior Place-Kicker Nesconset, N.Y.

Serge Lagardere, WestConn Sophom