Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
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Time of Poss.
SALISBURY, Md.—Buffalo State (2-4/0-3) opened the scoring, but host Salisbury (3-2/2-0) responded with 34 unanswered points to pull away for a 34-6 victory in an Empire 8 game today at Sea Gull Stadium.
Salisbury finished with 404 rushing yards, including a pair of 100-yard rushers, with quarterback Joey Jones going for 121 yards on 19 carries, and Jerome Johnson totaling 110 yards on just six tries. Jones was also just 3 of 6 passing for 51 yards. Steven Gamble came up with two of the Sea Gulls three interceptions on defense.
Buffalo State quarterback Casey Kacz (Amherst/Sweet Home) finished 22 of 32 for 153 yards and three interceptions. Rich Pete (Utica/TR Proctor) was held to 51 yards on 14 carries, and Mike Doherty (Tonawanda/Kenmore East) had six catches for 64 yards. John Alessandra (Tonawanda/Kenmore East) had a career-best six tackles and a strip and fumble recovery to highlight the defense.
Buffalo State piled up 65 yards of offense on its first possession, but finished with just 239 yards of total offense for the day. The Bengals 153 yards through the air and a season-low 86 yards on the ground.
After Scott Koen (Oxnard, CA/Santa Clara) and Brian Greene (Syracuse/Liverpool) teamed up for a fourth down sack to stop Salisbury's opening possession of the game, Buffalo State used 13 plays to march down the field and take the lead. The Bengals found the end zone on a 3-yard run by Kacz, but had their third-consecutive extra point try blocked.
Salisbury would find the end zone on each of its next three possessions to take control with a 20-6 lead at the half. The Sea Gulls got on the board with a 35-yard run by Brandon Norwood. Salisbury added two more rushing touchdowns in the second quarter, with Jones scoring from 17 yards out and Johnson breaking a 40-yard scoring run.
Buffalo State assembled a 15-play, 63 yard drive to open the second half, but Kacz was intercepted by Gamble deep in Sea Gull territory and the Bengals' never threatened again.
Salisbury answered with a 11-play, 85-yard drive that ended with a 1-yard dive by Tyler West, and then completed the scoring in the fourth quarter on a 31-yard keeper by Jones.
Buffalo State will return home next Saturday with another Empire 8 contest when Frostburg State visits Coyer Field for a 2 p.m. kickoff.