September 13, 2025
12:00 p.m.
Lions Stadium – Ewing, NJ
 
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WILKES-BARRE – After retaining the Mayor's Cup to open the season, the Wilkes University football team heads to the Garden State for a week two matchup with The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) Lions this Saturday.

This marks the first time that the Colonels have faced the Lions in program history.

The Colonels started 1-0 last Saturday with a win over rivals King's College, led by quarterback Cooper King (Northampton, PA/Northampton). King led the offense on the ground and through the air, passing for 109 yards and a touchdown while rushing for a team-high 62 yards with a rushing touchdown as well.

Justin Moore (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern Regional) was King's favorite target, leading the Wilkes receiving corps with 35 receiving yards. Juju Fears (Easton, PA/Easton Area) was the recipient of King's passing touchdown on Saturday, a 16-yard grab in the second quarter.
Chibugo Chigozie-Nwosu (Hillside, NJ/Hillside) followed King with 42 rushing yards in his first career start, followed by Ben Contella (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) with 20 yards.

The Colonel defense started the season strong, forcing three interceptions and holding the Monarchs to just 30 rushing yards in the victory. Tyler Wetzel (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge) was named Mayor's Cup MVP and Landmark Conference Defensive Athlete of the Week, leading the team with 13 total tackles, two sacks and a quarterback hurry. Cohen Creswell (Winchester, VA/Millbrook) followed with eight tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss, breaking up two passes as well.

On special teams, Nick Volpone's (Delco, PA/Ridley) 38-yard go-ahead field goal was a new career high for the senior. The Delco, Pa. native was also two-for-two on extra-point kicks. Peter Zarafonitis (Staten Island, NY/New Dorp) made his debut as the Colonel punter, averaging 41 yards on eight punts with two inside the 20-yard line and one over 50 yards. Daniel Pigga (Dunmore, PA/Dunmore) even made a splash on kick returns, breaking off a 50-yard return in the fourth quarter.

TCNJ enters this game 1-0 after a 27-24 win at Lycoming College on Saturday afternoon.

Joe Visaggio led a ground game that rushed for 279 yards against the Warriors, accounting for 111 with one touchdown. Quarterback Kyle Vellis led the team with 68 passing yards and one touchdown. Erik Garv led all Lions receivers with 82 yards and a touchdown catch.

Bill Westerby led the Lions defense with 11 total tackles, followed by Dave Giulian with 10 and a tackle for loss. Safety Justin Kurc led the secondary with two interceptions and a pass breakup, being named to the D3football.com Team of the Week.

On special teams, Tim Willever went one-for-two on extra-point kicks, with returners Albert D'Alessandro III and Isaiah Harrison combining for 94 kickoff return yards.

After this game, the Colonels return home to Schmidt Stadium to face Muhlenberg College on Saturday, September 20 at 12:00 p.m.