Union, NJ – Senior cornerback C.J. CONWAY picked off a pass deep in Montclair State territory in the closing seconds as the Red Hawks closed out their 2014 season with a 16-14 victory over Kean University on Saturday afternoon.

Conway intercepted two passes while ERIC GARGIULO tied the MSU single-season mark for interceptions as the Red Hawks claimed a share of the New Jersey Athletic Conference championship with the victory. MSU, which finished tied for the league title with Rowan and Morrisville State at 6-1, finished 8-2 overall the 23^rd eight-win campaign in program history.

Montclair State also finished 5-0 on the road, its first undefeated road season since 2003 when it also won all five contests away from Sprague Field

It was an inauspicious start for the Red Hawks as a fumble on the opening kickoff gave the Cougars the ball at the MSU 37. The Cougars ran off 12 plays over a seven-minute span but came up empty at a 25-yard field goal attempt went wide right.

The Red Hawks quickly capitalized on the momentum shift behind the running of senior TARIQ TURNER, who ran three times for 80 yards, ripping off runs of 25, 31 and the last a 24 yard touchdown run that gave MSU a 6-0 lead after the extra point attempt was blocked.

Kean responded with another long drive taking 6:47 off the clock and going 71 yards. Will Ingram finished off the drive with a three-yard run on the first play of the second quarter giving the Cougars a 7-6 lead.  After MSU failed to take advantage of 55-yard kickoff return by PAT CAGGIANO, Kean added another lengthy possession going 14-plays and 61 yards holding the ball for nearly eight minutes. However it would come up empty again as a 31-yard field goal went wide.

After trading possessions, Montclair took over at its own 20 yard line with 2:12 remaining in the half, just the third time the Red Hawks had the ball in the opening two periods and a total of 4:19 up to that point. RYAN DAVIES hit AARON WILLIAMS for nine yards on third down to keep the drive going and then Davies used his legs running 15 yards on 3^rd-and-12 out to the MSU 43. A 12-yard pass to BEN KOHLE pushed the ball to the Kean 45 and a 15-yard penalty against the Cougars brought the ball to the Cougars 30. Davies connected again with Williams for 19 yards to the 11 and then finished off the drive with an 11-yard scamper as the Red Hawks took a 13-7 lead at halftime.

In the second half, MSU got a break as ALLEN PHILLIPS forced a fumble that JOE KOONCE picked up on Kean's first possession giving Montclair the ball at its own 39. The Red Hawks couldn't cash in on the turnover however it would get another the next time Kean touched the ball. Conway picked off a pass at the Cougar 40 and returned it down to the 12. Three plays later, JOHN SCHUBERT connected from 24-yards out for a 16-7 lead with 7:28 to go in the third.

Defense became the story the rest of the game as Montclair thwarted several Kean drives in the final period. After an MSU interception gave the Cougars some life, Gargiulo ended that with a pick at the MSU 44 with 12:31 remaining. It was the 10^th interception of the season for the junior who tied the single-season mark set by Joe Altomare in 1986.

Kean would get the ball back and a halfback option pass from running back Damian Corredor to Quadir Johnson moved the ball to MSU 3. Quarterback Robert Meade rumbled in from three yards out cutting the lead to 16-14 with 6:47 to go.

Montclair State would be forced to punt on its next possession with Kean getting a final chance to perhaps pull the game out with 4:04 left. Meade ran 28 yards on the first play getting the ball to the MSU 47 and an Ingram 5-yard run on 4^th-and-2 put Kean at the Red Haws 39 with just over 90 seconds to play. Following a timeout and completion, Conway stepped in front of a Meade pass at the 10 ending the drive and sealing the win for Montclair State, its 33^rd in 40 all-time meetings with the Cougars.

The Red Hawks pulled out the victory despite having the ball for just 19:19 in the game as Kean outgained MSU 384-198. Turner had 114 of those yards on 19 carries. Gargiulo and BILL SHIMKO each had 10 tackles while BYRON BLAKE and freshman NICK CATALANO each had nine tackles.

Conway's two interceptions gave him eight for the year and 12 for his career which is sixth all-time in MSU history. The senior also finished with nine pass breakups in 2014 giving him 33 in his four years tying him with Jermain Johnson (1992-95) for second place on the MSU list.