PAXTON, Mass -- Bucs football traveled to Anna Maria College for their second game of the season and last non-conference game before beginning their eight-game conference slate next week. The Bucs took an early 7-0 lead that was erased by the AMCATS. Maritime fell behind and though they got back within seven points late, could not complete the comeback, losing to AMC, 37-30. 

The Basics

Final: AMCATS 37, Buccaneers 30

Records: Anna Maria (2-1)

              Maritime (0-2)

Inside The Numbers

Maritime

• Quarterback Marc Murphy completed eight of 15 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown and ran the ball three times for seven yards and a score.
• Saverio Relle II led the rushing attack with 48 yards on 10 carries. 
• Running backs Zach Proctor, and Chase Dombroski each scored a touchdown on the ground for the Bucs. 
• Owen Roth caught one pass for 63 yards and took it to the end zone for a Maritime touchdown. 
• Defensively, Liam Hines and Josh Cannon led the Bucs with eight total tackles each. Hines added a tackle for loss, fumble recovery and two pass break ups. 
• Edward Barlage recorded his first career interception that he returned for 13 yards to go along with his six total tackles.
• Nicolas Ford also had six tackles in the game and 0.5 tackles for loss.
• On special teams, kicker Logan Tsika converted his only field goal attempt from 25 yards and was successful on three of four extra point attempts. 
• Punter Jack Mulligan punted four times for 188 yards for an average of 47 yards per punt with a long punt of 62 yards and pinned the AMCATS inside their own 20 yard line once.

Anna Maria

• Quarterback Ryan Russell completed 27 of 37 passes for 302 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Russell also had 63 yards on the ground on eight carries and a touchdown.
• Jamal Cariglia led the AMCATS rushing attack with 84 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries. 
• Justin Brown ran the ball 4 times for 40 yards and a score.
• Deandre Wallace caught nine passes for 133 yards in the game.
• Mark Johnson-Morgan caught two touchdown passes on seven catches and 84 yards receiving. 
• Defensively, Dilaver Ibrahimi led all players with 11 total tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. 
• Lamar Wilkes recorded an interception and three solo tackles in the game. 
• On special teams, kicker Ryan Kent converted a 37-yard field goal as well as all four of his extra points.

How It Happened

Maritime received the opening kickoff of the game and wasted no time getting into the endzone. After two Relle runs for 12 yards, Murphy found Roth out of the backfield for a 63-yard score. Tsika converted the PAT and the Bucs led 7-0 less than two minutes into the game. Anna MAria answered the Bucs right away with a nine-play, 85 yard drive that took nearly three minutes. Russel scampered in for the score for 23 yards out. Kent converted the PAT to tie the game 7-7. The Bucs were forced into a three-and-out on their next possession and the AMCATS took over with 8:04 left in the first. With great field position at the Maritime 38 yard line, AMC only picked up 17 yards on six plays and were forced to attempt a field goal by the Maritime defense. Kent came on and converted the 37-yard attempt to give the hosts a 10-7 lead. The Buccaneers were forced to punt on their next drive and that was followed by a long drive by the AMCATS who got all the way down to the Bucs two yard line and elected to go for it on fourth down. They ended up leaving the points on the field as Hines took down an AMCATS receiver in the backfield to force the turnover on downs. The first quarter ended with the AMCATS leading the Bucs, 10-7.

The second started with a Bucs possession that could not get out of AMC territory and ended with a 62-yard Mulligan punt. Though the AMCATS started on their own 25, they marched down the field in 10 plays, ending the drive with a Russell to Johnson-Morgan touchdown pass from 16 yards out. Kent converted and the AMCATS were up 10, 17-7. On the Bucs ensuing drive, the had a long possession of their own taking 10 plays to go 57 yards and capped it off with a Dombroski touchdown from the one yard line. After the PAT the Bucs were back within three, 17-14, with 2:45 left in the first half. AMC wasn't done in the first half though as they countered the Buccaneers score with another of their own. They eclipsed 82 yards on 10 plays in just over two minutes and scored on another Russell to Johnson-Morgan pass, this time from 33 yard out, and took a 24-14 lead heading into the halftime break.

In the second half, the Buccaneers outscored the AMCATS despite the hosts taking the first possession of the half into the endzone on Brown's 36-yard touchdown run. AMC led the Bucs 31-14 with just over 13 minutes left in the third. Maritime went three-and-out on their next possession and then the defense for Maritime came up big with Barlage intercepting Russell and returning the ball 13 yards to give the Buccaneers great field position at the Anna MAria 36 yard line. Maritime ran some clock taking 3:25 to go 36 yard in seven plays though it paid off with Murphy running it in from six yards out to bring the Bucs back within 10, 31-21. On the AMCATS next possession, they ran just two plays and Brown fumbled in the backfield and Hines picked it up to get the ball back in the hands of the Maritime offense. At the Anna Maria 35, the Bucs ran seven plays, went 27 yards and were stalled by the AMCAT defense. Tsika came on and made a 25-yard field goal which made it a one possession game, 31-24. 

Anna Maria began their next drive in the third and ran just three plays before the game went to the fourth. On that drive in the fourth, AMC traveled 75 yards in 10 plays taking over four minutes off the clock and finished it off with a Cariglia score from 10 yards out. Anna Maria now led the Bucs 37-24 with 12:22 left in the game. On the Bucs next drive, Roth attempted to complete a pass of his own after his early touchdown and was intercepted by the AMCATS. The Bucs went on to force another turnover on downs by Anna Maria and took over with five minutes to play. It took a while as the Buccaneers had to go 94 yards but in 14 plays and four minutes, Maritime made it a one possession game again on a Proctor score from the one yard line. Tsika missed the extra point and the Bucs trailed 37-30 with 1:10 on the clock. Maritime attempted the onside kick which was recovered by Anna Maria who proceeded to kneel out the clock and take the 37-30 victory.

What's Next

The Buccaneer are back home next Saturday for their first conference game of the season against Fitchburg State on Maritime's Homecoming Weekend. Kickoff is set for 1pm at Clean Harbors Stadium.