MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME FOOTBALL

Saturday, September 10, 2011

Clean Harbors Stadium, Buzzards Bay, Mass.

FINAL:                   MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 19, WESTERN NEW ENGLAND 14

                                                                                                1              2              3              4                              Total

Western New England (1-1)                                              0              14           0              0              -                 14

Massachusetts Maritime (1-0)                                          6              0              13           0              -                 19

SCORING SUMMARY

MAM:      Matt White 4 yd run (kick failed)                                                                                       6:35 1^st

WNE:      JJ Jachym 18 yd run (Nick Fox-Edele kick)                                                                   14:27 2^nd

WNE:      Brendon Thompson 14 yd pass from John Krafick (Fox-Edele kick)                       1:21 2^nd

MAM:      White 1 yd run (Jake Bickley kick)                                                                                    10:41 3^rd

MAM:      Stefan Gustafson 54 yd punt return (pass failed)                                                         0:12 3^rd

Attendance:  1,212

BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. --  Senior Matt White (Westwood, Mass.) rushed for 117 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while sophomore Stefan Gustafson (Plymouth, Mass.) returned a punt 54 yards for what proved to be the winning score as Massachusetts Maritime opened its 2011 season with a 19-14 non-league college football victory over Western New England Saturday afternoon at Clean Harbors Stadium.

White’s four-yard plunge capped a five play, 32-yard drive midway through the first quarter that gave the host Buccaneers (1-0) an early 6-0 advantage, a touchdown that was set up on junior Evan Sheridan’s (Chelmsford, Mass.) 21-yard interception return.  The visiting Golden Bears (1-1) forced a turnover on downs on the next Massachusetts Maritime possession, and senior JJ Jachym (Milford, Conn.) capped a six-play, 69-yard drive with an 18-yard scamper just 33 seconds into the second stanza that gave Western New England a 7-6 edge.  The visitors forced another punt with just over four minutes remaining in the half, and sophomore quarterback John Krafick (New Milford, Conn.) engineered an ensuing eight-play, 61-yard drive, connecting with junior Brendon Thompson (Enfield, Conn.) on a 14-yard touchdown pass with 1:21 to play in the half that gave the Golden Bears a 14-6 advantage at the break.   

The Buccaneers took the second half kickoff at midfield and capitalized on the good position, as White’s one-yard plunge just 4:19 into the third quarter enabled the hosts to pull within one at 14-13.  The two teams exchanged punts on four of the next five possessions, and Gustafson, who had nine punt return yards all of last season, turned the last one into the deciding score with 12 seconds remaining in the third stanza.  Despite a pair of fourth quarter turnovers, Western New England forced one final scoring opportunity with just over a minute remaining, as Krafick drove the Golden Bears down to the Massachusetts Maritime 32-yard line from his own 20 before his last second pass fell incomplete as time expired.

White, who collected his second straight and fourth career 100-plus yard performance, accounted for all but 16 of the Buccaneers’ 133 rushing yards on the afternoon, as sophomore quarterback Mike Stanton (Quincy, Mass.) completed 11-of-23 passes for 101 yards to six different receivers.  Krafick, who added a 40.6 yard average on seven punts for the day, completed 16-of-31 passes for 165 yards in the setback for Western New England while amassing 197 yards of total offense, as the Golden Bears were held to 87 rushing yards for the contest. 

Senior Walter Butler (Bourne, Mass.) recorded nine total tackles (eight solo) while adding 4.5 tackles for losses totaling 18 yards to lead the way defensively for Massachusetts Maritime, which also received nine tackles (seven solo) from senior Mike Bois (Lakeville, Mass.) and seven solo stops to go with an interception from junior Eddy Ramos (Sunny Isles, Fla.).  Sophomore Kevin Soule (Medfield, Mass.) paced Western New England defensively with 13 total tackles, including 10 solo stops), while junior James Georges (Stamford, Conn.) added seven tackles and a sack for the Golden Bears, who also received four tackles and an interception from junior Phil Tsopanides (Fairfield, Conn.).  Western New England outgained Massachusetts Maritime by a 252-234 margin for the contest, as the Buccaneers avenged a 30-6 setback to the Golden Bears suffered last September in the eighth series meeting between the two schools.

Massachusetts Maritime hosts MIT in a non-league outing next Saturday afternoon at Clean Harbors Stadium that kicks off at Noon, while Western New England heads to Westfield, Mass. next Friday evening for a non-league contest with Westfield State that kicks off at 7:00 p.m.

BUC BLOG:  Massachusetts Maritime, which has won six of its last nine contests dating back to the September 10, 2010 setback at Western New England, emerged victorious in its season opener for the first time in five years…White has rushed for 268 yards in his last two appearances, including a career-high 151 yards in last November’s Cranberry Bowl victory over Bridgewater State…The Buccaneers held the ball for over 33 minutes on the afternoon and also held the Golden Bears to a 2-for-13 performance on third down conversions…The two teams combined for nearly 200 penalty yards on the day, as 19 flags were accepted, including 12 for 101 yards on the visitors.