UMass Dartmouth junior quarterback Stephen Gacioch earned his second Division II/III Gold Helmet Award of the season from the New England Football Writers Association on Sunday afternoon for his performance in Saturday’s 21-14 victory over Plymouth State at Cressy Field.

A native of Tiverton, R.I. and a graduate of Tiverton High School, Gacioch amassed 409 yards of total offense and accounted for all three touchdowns as the Corsairs prevailed in a battle of Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference unbeatens.  Stephen completed 32-of-45 pass attempts and increased his touchdown pass total to 15 on the year with tosses of five and three yards, and he averaged 4.7 yards on 22 carries while scoring from three yards out for UMass Dartmouth’s other visit to the end zone.  Gacioch capped the Corsairs’ triumph by rushing for 39 yards on nine carries on the game-clinching drive, as the hosts held the ball for the final 8:51 of the contest.

Gacioch accounted for all but 24 of UMass Dartmouth’s total offense output on the afternoon, as he had touches on 67 of his team’s 82 plays from scrimmage.  Stephen also collected his third MASCAC Geico Offensive Player of the Week in four outings this fall for his performance, and on the season, he has completed 91-of-143 pass attempts (63.6 percent) for 1,344 yards and 15 touchdowns while leading the Corsairs with 185 rushing yards on 63 carries and a score. 

Entering yesterday’s game with Plymouth State, Gacioch was ranked in the top seven in seven different categories in NCAA Division III play, as he was third in passing yards, fourth in passing touchdowns, fifth in total offense, sixth in both passing yards and passing yards per completion and seventh in both points responsible for and yards per pass attempt. Stephen also ranked 14th in points responsible for per game and 15th in passing efficiency.

Gacioch was previously honored with a Gold Helmet Award following his performance in UMass Dartmouth’s 54-7 season-opening victory over Alfred State on September 7^th, as he completed 19-of-28 pass attempts for 338 yards and a record six touchdowns against the Pioneers.  In just 21 career games played, Stephen has thrown for 4,507 yards and 41 touchdowns while adding 731 rushing yards and eight additional visits to the end zone.

Head Coach Mark Robichaud’s squad, which is 4-0 for the first time since the 2002 Corsairs won the New England Football Conference title en route to a berth in the NCAA Division III championship field under Hall of Famer mentor Bill Kavanaugh, hits the road for the first time this season on Saturday afternoon when UMass Dartmouth heads to Framingham State for a MASCAC clash that kicks off at Noon EDT.

Release courtesy of UMass Dartmouth Sports Information