Wayne, NJ - The start of the conference season can often mean a new beginning for a team. But for Montclair State and William Paterson, it was a case of same old, same old.

And while the Red Hawks were certainly happy with that, the Pioneers were much less enthused.

CRAIG CONWAY went 3-for-4 with a homer, two doubles, and four RBI and starting pitcher SCOTT ALLAN allowed two runs over over 5 2/3 innings to pace Montclair State to a 6-3 win over William Paterson on Thursday in the New Jersey Athletic Conference opener for both teams.

It was the eighth consecutive win for Montclair Stat (11-2-1), while William Paterson, an NCAA Division III World Series participant last season, fell to 5-9.

"It's good to do it against any team" said Conway of his home run. "But especially in the first conference game, against these guys."

Conway's two-run blast in the top of the fourth offset a two-run single by Jack Lipari that have given the Pioneers a 2-0 first-inning lead. Conway have the Red Hawks a 5-2 lead in the fifth with a two-out, two-run double off starter Dan Snyder (2-2).

All three MSU runs in that inning were unearned, courtesy of WPU second baseman Dan Torres' error on DAVE WURST's two-out roller. BRIAN ELLERSON, who had led off the inning with a single and moved to second on MARC HOUSER's sacrifice bunt, scored on the misplay. CHRIS BARAN followed with a walk, and he and Wurst scored on Conway's double.

"He's a good quality player," WPU coach Jeff Albies said of Conway. "I would rather not have him be the guy that beat us." Using that theory, Albies had Conway intentionally walked in the ninth, but GEORGE GALLAGHER followed with a run-scoring single fr his 27th RBI this season.

"I thought Snyder pitched well enough to win," Albies added. "Our defense has been pathetic. Infielders aren't getting jumps on balls. We're laying back on everything." Snyder allowed six runs, three earned, over 8 1/3 innings.

Albies wasn't happy with the Pioneers' offense either. "We were not aggressive at the plate," he said. "I think we're playing scared," WPU batters totaled nine strikeouts, including five looking.

Reliever KEVIN RAKOWSKI-KUHLMAN fanned five over 2 2/3 hitless innings and GREG BELSON retired the only two batters he face, one by strikeout, to get his first save.

"Scott did a real good job of keeping us in the game," MSU coach Norm Schoenig said.of his starter. After Lipari's two-run single with one out in the first, Allan fanned Mark Kalish and retired Corwin Belfield on a foul pop to strand two.

"He kept (the deficit) at two when it could have been three or four," Schoenig said. "I don't want that to go unnoticed."

Meanwhile, Albies can't help but see the "malaise" as he put it, that his team is in. "It's only the first game of the conference season," the coach said. "But right now, I don't like the way things are going.