NEWTON, Mass. – The Maritime football team recorded its sixth win of the season on Saturday afternoon, knocking off the Mound Ida Mustangs by a 21-13 score on Alumni Field in Massachusetts.
With the win the Privateers have recorded three consecutive wins over the Mustangs, while also reaching six wins for the second consecutive season.
Maritime's defense held the Mustangs at bay throughout the day keeping Mount Ida pinned with five sacks and also recording a pair of interceptions, including an interception returned for a touchdown by junior Matthew Mavrovich (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y./Mt. Sinai). Senior Kendal Parker (Evans, Ga./Lakeside) and junior Payton Campbell (Rockaway, N.J./Morris Knolls) each had two sacks on the day, while sophomore Liam Bailey (Sayville, N.Y./Sayville) added the fifth sack for Maritime.
Parker also led the defense with 11 tackles, while Bailey was second on the team with 10. Senior Craig Hinrichs (Islip, N.Y./Islip) added eight stops, while senior Nick Conte (Franklin Square, N.Y./Carey) led the secondary unit with six stops on the game.
On the offensive side of the ball junior quarterback Thomas Wright (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh) completed nine passes for 110 yards, and one touchdown to senior Matt Ward (Ronkonkoma, N.Y./Sachem North). Wright also has the team's lone rushing touchdown as he led the team with 68 rushing yards on the afternoon.
Ward led the receiving unit with the touchdown as he hauled in the 25-yard reception. Junior Curtis Smith(Brooklyn, N.Y./New Utrecht) had three grabs for 40 yards, while junior Christian Castle (Felton, Pa./Red Lion) had a game-high three catches for a total of 24 yards. Senior Chris Olberding (Dix Hills, N.Y./Walt Whitman) had 35 rushing yards, while junior Brandonn Drumgole (Mt. Sinai, N.Y./Mt. Sinai) had three carries for 20 yards, Drumgole also had one catch for a six-yard gain.
Senior Matthew Murphy (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) had four punts for a 38-yard average, while also recording four kickoffs for a total of 258 yards including a pair of touchbacks. The Privateers had a pair of seven-yard kickoff returns by senior Devin Kenny (Staten Island, N.Y./Monsignor Farrell) and freshman Matthew Cebulski (Kings Park, N.Y./Kings Park).
After a series of punts to open the game, Maritime got the ball back with 10:01 left in the opening quarter at the Mount Ida 21-yard line. After several gains by Olberding and junior wide receiver Andrew Geni(Bronx, N.Y./Archbishop Stepinac), Wright found Ward for a 25-yard touchdown score to put the Privateers on the board first at 7-0.
Mount Ida couldn't respond on its next possession, but got the ball back early in the second quarter and were able to break free for a 30-yard touchdown carry to even the score at seven.
The Privateers had a pair of three-and-outs to close the period, while Mount Ida's final two possessions of the half took 17 plays and drained just under 10 minutes from the clock to send the teams into the locker room at seven apiece.
Mount Ida took the lead midway through the second half as the Mustangs scored to take their first lead of the game at 13-7, as Mount Ida missed the extra point. The Privateers put together a 12-play 64-yard drive on the ensuing possession, but could not convert on Murphy's field goal attempt.
After Mount Ida got the ball back following the missed field goal, the third play of the series saw Mavrovich pick off a pass and return it 30 yards to the end zone to even the game at 13. Murphy's extra point gave Maritime a 14-13 lead with less than a minute left in the third quarter.
The Mustangs punted to open the fourth quarter and gave Maritime a new possession with 14 minutes left in regulation. The Privateers answered the call and drove down the field including a 17-yard grab by Castle to set up first down for the Privateers. Two plays later, Wright rushed into the end zone to put the Privateers up 21-13 with 10:15 to go in the game.
The two sides exchanged a pair of punts on the ensuing possessions before the Mustangs got the ball back trailing by eight with just 90 seconds left on the clock. On 4th and 18 with no timeouts left the Privateers intercepted their second pass of the day as Conte hauled in the arrant Mount Ida throw to ice the game and give Maritime its third conference win.
Maritime (6-1, 3-1 ECFC) will return home next weekend on Saturday, October 28 to host the Castleton Spartans for a 1 p.m. start.
Mount Ida (3-4, 2-2 ECFC) heads on the road next Saturday for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Alfred State.
Football Gets Past Mount Ida in Conference Matchup, 21-13
/seasons/2017/boxscores/20171021_h45b.xml
2017
SUNY-Maritime
21
Mount Ida
13
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUNY-Maritime (6-1) | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Mount Ida (3-4) | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
Oct 21, 2017