MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME FOOTBALL
Saturday, September 24, 2016
Clean Harbors Stadium, Buzzards Bay, Mass.
FINAL: MASSACHUSETTS MARITIME 32, WORCESTER STATE 14
BUZZARDS BAY, Mass. -- Junior Richie Phillips (Onset, Mass.) rushed for a career-high 143 yards and accounted for three touchdowns to lead Massachusetts Maritime to a 32-14 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference football victory over Worcester State Saturday afternoon at Clean Harbors Stadium.
The host Buccaneers (2-1, 1-0 MASCAC) jumped out to a 13-0 lead in the opening seven minutes of action, as junior quarterback Chris Haggerty (Cohasset, Mass.) found his senior brother Shane Haggerty from 23 yards out on their opening drive before junior Liam Corkery's (Merrimac, Mass.) 66-yard interception return gave Massachusetts Maritime possession at the visiting Lancers' (0-4, 0-2 MASCAC) 12-yard line. A fumble on the one-yard line was recovered in the end zone by Buccaneer senior Aidan Desrosiers (North Attleboro, Mass.) for the hosts' second touchdown, but Worcester State sliced its deficit in half with just three seconds remaining in the opening stanza on sophomore Matt Lezama's (Milton, Mass.) 43-yard touchdown run that made it 13-7.
A Lancer fumble on the Massachusetts Maritime 43-yard line midway through the second quarter that was recovered by Buccaneer senior Marshall McCarthy (Duxbury, Mass.) was converted into a score by Phillips, who hauled in a screen pass and dashed 74 yards to extend the hosts' edge to 19-7 with 7:40 remaining the half. After the visitors turned their ensuing possession over on downs, Chris Haggerty directed an eight-play, 63-yard drive that was kept alive on a fourth down pass interference call and capped by Phillips' four-yard plunge to give the hosts' a 26-7 cushion, but Lezama struck back once again for Worcester State in the closing seconds before intermission, as he caught a 21-yard touchdown from freshman quarterback Ismael Jenkins (Lawrence, Mass.) to slice the Lancer deficit to 26-14 at the break.
The second half settled into a defensive tussle that saw the squads combine to punt on nine straight possessions, and after Worcester State turned the ball over on downs at midfield, Phillips iced Massachusetts Maritime's triumph with a 37-yard touchdown run (his seventh rushing score of the season) with 2:37 remaining to account for the final margin, as the Lancers' fourth turnover of the afternoon on the ensuing kickoff was recovered by Buccaneer junior Alexander Ruddy (Mansfield, Mass.) on the visitors' 41-yard line and allowed the hosts to run out the clock.
Phillips amassed 222 all-purpose yards to go with his three scores in the win for Massachusetts Maritime, which ran 89 plays and collected 389 yards of total offense. Chris Haggerty completed 18-of-31 pass attempts for 216 yards and a pair of touchdowns for the Buccaneers, as 11 of those receptions were hauled in by Shane Haggerty for 107 yards. Lezama gained 79 yards on nine carries to go with his score in the setback for Worcester State, as Jenkins completed 24-of-45 pass attempts for 254 yards on the afternoon. Senior Derek Moore (Mendon, Mass.) recorded six receptions for 57 yards for the Lancers, who also received a combined nine catches and 106 yards from the tandem of senior Arron Witkus (Chelmsford, Mass.) and sophomore Dexter Andrews (Dorchester, Mass.).
Sophomore Adrell Enlow (Worcester, Mass.) recorded nine total tackles (seven solo) and an interception to lead the way defensively for Massachusetts Maritime, which also received nine stops from junior Bobby Gross (Tampa, Fla.). Marshall McCarthy added seven tackles to his fumble recovery for the Buccaneers, who also received six stops and a pair of sacks from sophomore Derek Anson (Braintree, Mass.). Junior Stephen Smialek (Dartmouth, Mass.) recorded 16 total tackles (five solo) in the setback for Worcester State, while senior Matt Loureiro (West Boylston, Mass.) and junior Samuel Weeks (Methuen, Mass.) combined for 26 tackles, including 19 solo and a pair of sacks for the Lancers.
Both teams face Fitchburg State in their next Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference contests, as Massachusetts Maritime squares off with the Falcons next Saturday afternoon at Elliot Field in Fitchburg, Mass. beginning at Noon while Worcester State entertains Fitchburg State on Saturday, October 8th in Worcester, Mass. for a 1:00 p.m. kickoff.