PAXTON, Mass. – Husson College amassed 406 yards on the ground en-route to a 53-38 victory over Anna Maria at AMCAT field on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. The win was the first of the year for the Eagles and improves their record to 1-5 (1-2 ECFC) on the season, while the loss drops the AMCATS to 0-6 (0-3 ECFC).
Santino Simone (Worcester, Mass.) and Domenique Concepcion (Middlebury, Conn.) starred on offense for the AMCATS, as Simone passed for 262 yards and one touchdown through the air, while also running for 58 yards and two more touchdowns. Conception was also exceptional, as he added set an AMC program record with 11-receptions for 154 yards and a touchdown.
Justin Lindie (Winslow, Maine.) and Byron Jackson (Bridgeport, Conn.) led the high octane running attack for the Eagles, as Lindie and Jackson rushed for 183 and 160 yards, respectively, while Lindie added two scores and Jackson contributed three.
Husson got on the board first after forcing Anna Maria to punt after a quick three-and-out. After converting for two first downs, quarterback Jack Hersom (Sidney, Maine.) scored on a 26-yard quarterback keeper and Lee Gustin (Dexter, Maine.) converted the point after to give the visitors a 7-0 advantage.
The Eagles scored again on their ensuing drive after an AMCAT fumble gave Husson possession on the AMC 20-yard line. After a holding penalty backed them up, Byron Jackson slashed through the middle of the Anna Maria defense for a 30-yard run to pay-dirt, pushing the score to 14-0 after a converted PAT.
After being forced to punt on the following drive, the AMCATS took back control of the ball when Mike Joseph (Marlboro, Mass.) forced a fumble that Patrick Driscoll (Lawrence, Mass.) recovered on the Husson 17-yard line. A personal foul penalty moved Anna Maria to the Husson 8-yard line before Robert Small scampered into the end zone for an eight-yard touchdown on the first play of the drive. Jamal Mitchell (Shelton, Conn.) converted the PAT and cut the lead to 14-7 entering the second quarter.
The visitors looked like they were going to put the game out of reach after a pair of one-yard touchdown runs by Jack Hersom and Byron Jackson pushed the lead to 26-7 after both PAT.
However, nearing the end of the half, the Eagles went for the kill attempting a fourth-and-22 on the Anna Maria 35-yard line. The AMCAT defense held and forced a turnover on downs, giving the offense one last shot to score with 32 seconds remaining before intermission. After a couple quick completions to the sidelines, Santino Simone launched a bomb to Domenique Concepcion from 42-yards out. With three defenders in the area, Concepcion made a spectacular leaping grab on a perfectly placed pass to complete the hailmary attempt with just eight seconds remaining in the half. With the touchdown, Anna Maria cut the lead to 26-14 heading into the locker room.
Starting the second half with possession, the Eagles scored on the opening drive on Justin Lindie's first touchdown run of the day, pushing the score to 32-14.
Anna Maria didn't go quietly, responding on the ensuing possession with an 11-play, 57-yard drive, finished by a Simone one-yard quarterback sneak into the end zone.
The AMCATS then forced Husson to punt on their next drive, and pulled the score to 32-24 after a Jamal Mitchell 23-yard field goal.
The AMCATS remained eight points behind after HUsson's Justin Lindie and AMC's Chris Meadows (New Rochelle, N.Y.) each traded two-yard touchdown runs, moving the score to 39-31.
After Meadows's two-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter, Ivan Somerville (Tampa, FLA.) looked destined to return the kickoff back for a touchdown. However, AMC's Kevin Brown (Bronx, N.Y.) caught him from behind and forced Sommerville to fumble at the Anna Maria 1-yard line. It was all-for-not, however, as Husson's Tyler Pembroke (Veazie, Maine.) fell on top of the loose ball in the end zone for the touchdown, increasing the lead to 46-31.
Santino Simone and his offensive unit refused to quit, spanning 63-yards over 12 plays on their next possession and scoring on a four-yard scramble by the sophomore QB to bring the score to 46-38.
The AMCATS comeback attempt was then cut short after the onside kick was recovered by Husson, who then added an insurance score on Byron Jackson's 16-yard touchdown run to finalize the game at 53-38.
Both team's return to action next Saturday, as Husson travels to face Norwich at 1:30 PM, and the AMCATS host Castleton State at 1:00 PM.