FITCHBURG, Mass. -Â The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth football team stayed in the drivers seat for the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Championship with a 49-0 victory at Fitchburg State Saturday afternoon.
The Corsairs improve to 7-1 and 6-0 in the MASCAC with its two most important games coming up to close the regular season, while the Falcons drop to 1-7 and 0-6 in the conference.
UMass Dartmouth dominated in every aspect of the game. The Corsairs had 532 yards of total offense, while the defense held the Falcons to only 23 yards on the day. UMass Dartmouth rushed for 362 yards and limited Fitchburg State to -19 on the ground and the passing yardage came out to a 170 to 42 advantage for the road team.
The Corsairs' rushing attack was responsible for five touchdowns. SophomoreÂ
Jalyn Aponte gained 117 yards on six carries and two TD's, while senior
Luis Gonzalez picked up two scores and 42 yards, freshman
Jacob Gibbons had 43 yards and one touchdown. Junior
Richarno Hylton carried for 77 yards on seven touches.
Through the air, junior
Dante Aviles-Santos threw for 141 yards, while sophomore
Matt Gacioch was 3-4 with 29 yards and two TD passes. Sophomore
Angel Sanchez went for 155 yards and a touchdown on seven catches, while Aponte pulled in a TD grab as well.
UMass Dartmouth scored on its first drive of the day. A 19-yard rush by Gonzalez and a 24-yard pitch and catch from Aviles-Santos to Sanchez set up a three-yard TD rush from Gonzalez to make it a quick 7-0 lead with 11:37 on the clock.
It did not take long for the Corsairs to strike again. Starting on their own 14, a 45-yard Aponte rush and a 40-yard reception by Sanchez made it an easy, one-yard touchdown rush for Gonzalez with 6:50 in the first.
Three passes from Aviles-Santos to Sanchez for a combined 50 yards gave Aponte a two-yard TD rush to up the score to 21-0 at the end of the first.
Gacioch threw for his two touchdowns in the second quarter. He first connected with Aponte for a two-yard score with 6:30 left. He did it again in the final minutes of the half, this time to Sanchez, for a 21-yard TD strike to take it to the break with a 35-0 lead.
Aponte broke free for a 54-yard rushing touchdown to begin the third quarter and Gibbons rushed home a one-yard score to finish it off in the third quarter.
UMass Dartmouth faces Bridgewater State at home for a big-time MASCAC matchup at 12 p.m. on Saturday.
