PAXTON, Mass.—The Maine Maritime Academy football team totaled 510 yards of offense en route to a 42-12 win against the Anna Maria College AMCATS on Saturday afternoon in non-conference action at AMCAT Field.
The win marks the first of the season for the Mariners, who improve 1-0, while the loss drops the AMCATS to 0-2.
The Mariners fumbled on the AMCATS' six-yard line on their first drive of the day, but recovered soundly, as their next four drives resulted in touchdowns.
Maine Maritime first score came with 3:48 remaining in the first half on a 38-yard run by Jacob Doolan (Fairfield, Maine). A good point-after kick by Johnny Weymouth (Windham, Maine) set the score at 7-0.
The Mariners struck again 4:08 into the second quarter as senior offensive lineman Keith Nelson (Holden, Mass.) recovered a MMA fumble in the end zone. Weymouth again connected on the good point-after attempt.
Anna Maria's ensuing drive was dominated by junior running back Christopher Bettano (Tewksbury, Mass.) who first recorded a 79-yard kickoff return to set himself up for a six-yard touchdown rush. A fumbled extra-point attempt set the score at 14-6.
The Mariners would start the ensuing drive on their own 36-yard line and Michael Fahey (Union, Conn.) stacked a 30-yard rush followed by a 34-yard rush on net his first touchdown of the day. Weymouth hit his third PAT of the day to give the Mariners a 21-6 edge.
The AMCATS fumbled on their next drive, and the Mariners answered with another touchdown drive. The visitors used six plays to travel 29 yards, resulting with a three-yard rush by Joseph DiBiase (South Portland, Maine). Weymouth's extra-point attempt was unsuccessful.
Anna Maria stared their next drive on the 35 yard line following an out-of-bounds kickoff. The AMCATS used five plays to travel 44 yards before sophomore quarterback Greg McGoldrick (Brooklyn, N.Y.) found junior wide receiver Will Ricard (Billerica, Mass.) in the end zone for a 21-yard touchdown pass. The AMCATS' attempt at two-points was unsuccessful.
The final four minutes of the first half were scoreless and the Mariners carried the 27-12 lead into halftime.
Maine Maritime would tack on 15 more points in the third quarter, as Fahey scored on a 72-yard run with 10:09 to play and was successful on the two-point conversion with a pass to Joshua Doolan (Fairfield, Maine). The Mariners also scored as time expired in the quarter as Fahey completed a 10-yard pass to DiBiase. Weymouth's successful point-after attempt set the final score of 42-12, as the fourth quarter would prove scoreless for both teams.
Fahey accounted for 252 MMA rushing yards with two touchdowns in addition to 20 passing yards with a touchdown. Jacob Doolan added 103 yards on 11 carries, averaging 8.8 yards per rush, while DiBiase chipped in with 89 yards on 20 carries. Joshua Doolan added 73 rushing yards on six carries for a team-best 11.2 yards per rush.
Anna Maria's offense was paced by Bettano, who netted 42 rushing yards on 15 carries. Daniel Faison (Bowie, Md.) added 25 yards on four carries, while Adrian Brown (Hampton, Va.) chipped in with 24 yards on four carries.
McGoldrick completed 16 of 35 pass attempts for 164 yards on the afternoon and threw just one pick. His passing output accounted for more than half of the AMCATS 282 total yards of offense.
Defensively, the AMCATS were paced by senior linebacker Kevin Card's (Deer Park, N.Y.) career-best 25 tackles. With today's performance, he now holds the Anna Maria program record for most tackles in a game. The previous record of 19 was set in 2009 against Malone by Rich Brandt.
Sophomore Mike Sinto (Long Island, N.Y.) added 14 tackles, while Tyler Rocha (Cranston, R.I.) and William Bishop (Uxbridge, Mass.) added seven tackles each. The Anna Maria defense saw nearly 35 minutes of work on the day.
The Mariners defense received a team-best nine tackles from Johnny Weymouth (Windham, Maine) and two sacks from Michael Burgess (North Yarmouth, Maine).
Anna Maria has a bye next weekend and will return to AMCAT Field on Saturday, September 27th for a 1:00 p.m. start against Catholic. The Mariners will be back in action next Saturday as they take on Massachusetts Maritime in the 42nd annual Admiral's Cup.