PAXTON, Mass. – Freshman running back Mick Wong (Hartford, Vt.) rushed for a career-high 118 yards and sophomore Tyler Carpenter (Fort Edward, N.Y.) added 85 yards and three touchdowns to lead Castleton State College to a 49-35 win over Anna Maria College in Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) action Saturday afternoon.

With the win Castleton improves to 3-3 overall and 3-1 in conference play, while Anna Maria is still in search of its first win at 0-7, 0-4. The Spartans have matched their win total from the inaugural 3-6 campaign a season ago, and remain tied for second place in the league standings.

Carpenter broke a scoreless tie with a one-yard touchdown plunge with 12:33 remaining in the opening quarter, the first of a host of scoring opportunities for both sides. The touchdown capped a five-play drive that spanned just 38 yards after an AMCAT punt netted just 12 yards setting up the Spartans with a short field. Anna Maria took the ensuing possession 79 yards on 14 plays, but came up short, turning the ball over on downs at the Castleton one yard line.

A Castleton three-and-out series, followed by a 64-yard Carl Ojala (Pittsford, Vt.) punt set up an Anna Maria drive at their own 26. Robert Small (Tarrytown, N.Y.) broke free on the opening play of the drive, and raced 74 yards to pay dirt to tie the score, and set the tone for an offensive free-for-all that saw a combined 46 first downs, 1110 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Shane Brozowski (Rensselaer, N.Y.) orchestrated an eight-play 48-yard touchdown drive to push the lead to 14-7, capping it off with a 14-yard touchdown run. The Spartans held the lead until 9:46 in the second quarter when AMCAT quarterback Santino Simone (Worcester, Mass.) hooked up with Greg Caldwell (Springvale, Maine) for a five-yard touchdown capping a 12-play 80-yard drive. Another Carpenter touchdown run of one yard gave the Spartans a 21-14 advantage on the ensuing possession, but Kevin McCoy (Springfield, Mass.) took the kick-off back 69 yards for a touchdown and yet another tie score.

It proved to be the final tie of the game however, as Wong hauled in a 16-yard touchdown pass from Brozowski with 1:10 remaining in the half, and Castleton tacked on another touchdown on its first possession of the third quarter to push the lead to 35-21.

Small and the Anna Maria game were not finished however, as he once again took the first play on the ensuing drive 80 yards for his second touchdown of the day.

All told, Small racked up 256 yards on 24 carries, while Simone added 140 yards and a touchdown on 22 carries. Simone also threw for 188 yards on 16-of-37 and a touchdown. Dom Concepcion (Middlebury, Conn.) led the AMCAT receiving corps with six catches for 60 yards. Defensively, Jordan Koehler (West Warwick, R.I.) led the way with 13 tackles, including one for a loss and also forced a fumble.

Wong's 118 yards came on 15 carries, including a 50-yard scamper in the second quarter that set up Carpenter's second touchdown. Brozowski rushed for 24 yards on nine carries and scored a pair of touchdowns, while Chad Bentz (Juneau, Alaska) added a two-yard touchdown plunge. Brozowski three for 299 yards, completing 19-of-24 with a touchdown. Michael Patterson (Jackson, N.J.) hauled in five catches for 94 yards to lead the receivers. Dustin Young (Dunnellon, Fla.) led the Spartan defense with eight tackles, while Jerall Sinclair (South Burlington, Vt.) added seven tackles and a sack.

The Spartans will travel to Husson University next weekend for a 1:00 p.m. ECFC kick-off.