DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Powered by a two-score third quarter and staunch defense, the UMass Dartmouth football team shutout Massachusetts Maritime Academy by a 26-0 margin in Massachusetts State Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action on Saturday.
The game, which was played during Blue & Gold Weekend, saw the Corsairs improve to 5-1 on the season and 3-1 in conference play, while the Buccaneers slip to 1-4 and 1-2 in the MASCAC.
It was a second drive of the opening quarter run that got the Corsairs on the board as junior wideout
Marvens Jean carried the ball two yards up the middle for the touchdown at 5:08. UMassD extended the drive as senior quarterback
Dante Aviles-Santos hit sophomore wide receiver
Eli Matthews for an eight-yard gain to the two-yard line.
The Corsairs carried that 6-0 lead into the opening of the second stanza, using a 12-play drive to increase their lead. Grad student rusher
Luis Gonzalez set the play up beautifully, carrying the ball up the middle for three years to put the ball on the 1-yard line. Following a broken up play on 2nd-and-1, Gonzalez was given the ball once more, driving it into the endzone for a 12-0 margin.
It was a solid defensive effort throughout the quarter as the home team kept the Buccaneers off the scoreboard heading into halftime.
On the opening drive of the third quarter, the Corsairs once again brought it home as a 15-yard throw was pulled in by junior tight end
Jalen Kopecky. A
Braedyn DeMarco point-after was good, making it a 19-0 advantage.
The final drive of the quarter for the Corsairs saw more points added to the board as junior rusher
Jalyn Aponte carried the ball on a six-yard gain into the endzone. DeMarco's P-A-T made it 26-0 heading into the final frame.
In the fourth, while the UMassD offense didn't reach the endzone, the Corsairs defense was outstanding, including back-to-back sacks by junior linebackers
Mike Henricksen and
Sam Alicea.
UMass Dartmouth's defense was paced by Henricksen, who recorded a game-high 12 tackles, including three solo and a sack for a loss of four yards. Senior captain and defensive back
Trell Best notched 10 tackles, including four solo, while senior linebacker
Jackson Wellman added eight tackles and a game-high five solo with a tackle for a loss of six yards and a forced fumble.
Alicea had five tackles, including three solo with two sacks for a loss of 11 yards, while senior defensive back
Logan Chappell had seven tackles, while intercepting the ball for a gain of 34 yards for the Corsairs.
Offensively, Aviles-Santos went 21-of-36 with 278 yards and a touchdown. He was intercepted once in the contest. Aponte recorded 56 yards on nine carries with a score, while Gonzalez notched 11 carries with 51 yards and a TD. In the air, Jean hauled in 11 catches for 138 yards, while junior wide receiver
Angel Sanchez had five catches for 92 yards.
The Corsairs owned a 23-10 margin on First Downs, out-rushing the Buccaneers by a 135-114 yard margin. UMass Dartmouth owned the air, posting 281 yards, while limiting MMA to 54 passing yards. In total, the Corsairs had 416 yards of total offense, limiting the visitors to 168 for the game.
UMass Dartmouth returns to action on October 14, heading to Westfield State University for a 2pm MASCAC tilt against the Owls.
