Box Score DARTMOUTH, Mass. – By posting a season-high 705 yards offense on the second-most plays run in a game in NCAA Division III Football history, UMass Dartmouth earned its first shutout since 2011 on Saturday, dismantling Massachusetts Maritime 33-0 at Cressy Field.
The Basics
Score: UMass Dartmouth 33, Mass. Maritime 0
Records: UMass Dartmouth (5-3, 4-2 MASCAC) | Mass. Maritime (4-3, 3-2 MASCAC)
How it Happened
After neither team could find much spark in the beginning, senior Cory Burnham (Essex, Mass.) and the Corsairs finally broke through with 42 seconds remaining in the first quarter. Burnham found a leaping Abbi Bamgbose (Worcester, Mass.) for an acrobatic 23-yard catch in the end zone, putting the hosts up 6-0 after the failed two-point conversion attempt.
Another slow quarter gave way to two more UMass Dartmouth touchdowns within the final two minutes of the half. From eight yards out at 1:23, sophomore quarterback Jacob Francis (Middletown, R.I.) carried the ball in to cap a nearly four-minute drive. After forcing another Mass. Maritime three-and-out, Burnham completed a 31-yard pass to Kevin Wadsworth (Bridgewater, Mass.) in the ensuing drive, and then found Matt Clement (Bridgewater, Mass.) for a two-yard touchdown toss. Senior Stephen Roy (Northborough, Mass.) punched in the ball for the extra two points with 12 seconds remaining, giving the hosts a 20-0 lead at half.
The Corsair defense continued to put on stifling performance, suppressing the Buccaneers in the final two stanzas for the shutout. Midway through the third, UMass Dartmouth's Alex Ortega (Lynn, Mass.) intercepted a Chris Haggerty (Cohasset, Mass.) pass, and the visitors couldn't convert on a three-and-a-half minute drive to close out the third.
Burnham completed three passes and the run game chipped away to result in a two-yard touchdown for Eddie Sheridan (Chelmsford, Mass.) in the fourth, and sophomore Matt DeLeo (Little Compton, R.I.) rushed six yards for the final score with 2:42 remaining. The Corsairs completed the dominant performance by not allowing Mass. Maritime to run more than five consecutive plays in the final quarter.
Inside the Numbers
- The Corsair defense allowed the fewest yards from an opponent this year, holding the second-most productive offense in the MASCAC to merely 173 total yards. The Buccaneers had been averaging 413 yards per outing.
- Linebackers David Collins (Mansfield, Mass.) and Marvey Mathurin (Woburn, Mass.) each posted nine tackles on the game, while Sam Bullock (Lakeville, Mass.) recovered the fourth fumble for his career.
- With 120 plays on offense, UMass Dartmouth becomes the first Division III team to reach the mark since Mass. Maritime ran 121 plays against Worcester State on Sept. 28, 2013, which sits as the Division III record.
- UMass Dartmouth's 229 passing yards were the most for the Corsairs in the air this season, with Burnham's 277 passing yards also marking a season-high for the senior.
- Burnham completed the longest pass of the season for UMass Dartmouth thus far in the second quarter, finding a wide-open Micah Gregory (Centerville, Mass.) for 59 yards.
- The last time the Corsairs registered 700-plus yards of offense was last season when they put up 744 in a 49-41 win over Westfield State.
- The last time a UMass Dartmouth team shut out an opponent was Sept. 16, 2011, when they prevailed 16-0 over Plymouth State. The Corsairs have shut out the Buccaneers once before, by a 54-0 margin in 2004.
- Sheridan has now surpassed 100 yards rushing in all seven games in which he's played this season, and senior Michael Slaughter, Jr. (Springfield, Mass.) has exceeded the mark in three contests on the year.
- Sophomore Johnny Mims (Dorchester, Mass.) ran for a career-high 82 yards, averaging 9.1 per carry.
Up Next
The Corsairs are back on the road next Saturday, traveling to Western Connecticut for a 5 p.m. kickoff, while Mass. Maritime hosts Framingham State at Clean Harbors Stadium at noon on the same day.
