Oct 12, 2024
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – U.S. Merchant Marine Academy junior quarterback Gervy Alota (San Diego, Calif.) connected with senior wide receiver Talsen Smith (Roseville, Calif.) for a pair of second-half touchdowns to lead the visiting Mariners to a 21-0 victory over the MIT football team on a blustery and sunny Saturday afternoon at Steinbrenner Stadium.
THE BASICS:
- Score: Merchant Marine 21, MIT 0
- Records: Merchant Marine (4-1 Overall, 2-1 NEWMAC), MIT (1-3 Overall, 0-3 NEWMAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- Merchant Marine took advantage of three MIT turnovers in the contest, forcing an early MIT fumble to take a first quarter lead.
- With MIT on its own 31-yard line at the start of its third drive, Merchant Marine first year linebacker Caleb Hartzell (Centennial, Colo.) flushed MIT junior quarterback Thomas Stueber (West Islip, N.Y.) from the pocket before sophomore Zatyk Holub (Mount Vernon, Iowa) delivered a sack that also sent the ball free on the turf. The Mariners recovered the football and scored on the third play of their next drive on a 2-yard run from first year Sonny Endicott (Colorado Springs, Colo.).
- Merchant Marine carried the 7-0 lead into halftime as neither team could find momentum in the second quarter. The Engineers nearly got on the board just before halftime when Stueber escaped down the near sideline for a 35-yard run that was capped by an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. The flag pushed the Engineers to the Merchant Marine 14-yard line, but Stueber was picked off in the corner of the end zone by junior Chase Shavey (Mercer Island, Wash.) on the next play.
- MIT's biggest gain of the third quarter came on an 18-yard rush by sophomore Carson Phelps (Wichita, Kansas) but the Engineers were forced to punt when the same drive stalled at their own 45-yard line.
- Merchant Marine broke the game open on the next drive, as Alota connected with Smith for the biggest play on the day, an 80-yard touchdown pass over the top to Smith that pushed the Merchant Marine lead to 14-0 with 2:30 left in the third quarter.
- With the Engineers trailing in the fourth, junior Ian Morris (Park City, Utah) recovered an Alota fumble at midfield that briefly shifted momentum. However, MIT's first play on the next drive resulted in a fumble that was scooped up by Merchant Marine's Jack Temple at the MIT 47-yard line.
- The next Mariners drive saw Alota and Smith connect again, this time for a 12-yard touchdown and a slant over the middle that made the score 21-0 in favor of the visitors.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Alota finished the contest 8-of-12 for 160 yards and two touchdowns. The junior also rushed for 30 yards on 14 attempts as Merchant Marine finished with 50 total attempts on the ground.
- Stueber was under pressure throughout the game, with the Mariners totaling five sacks in the contest.
- Phelps finished with 94 yards of total offense to lead MIT, totaling 63 yards on 20 attempts rushing and 31 yards receiving on a pair of receptions.
- MIT sophomore Chase Fishman (Saddle River, N.J.) totaled a game-high 10 tackles, including five solo tackles. Senior Donny Stralkus (North Brunswick, N.J.) was second for MIT with nine tackles and now leads the team with 37 on the season.
- Morris tallied his second career fumble recovery and the first since his rookie season in 2022.
UP NEXT:
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MIT will visit Springfield College next Saturday, October 19 for a 12:00 PM NEWMAC contest. Merchant Marine will return home to Kings Point, NY to host Norwich on Senior Day next Saturday at noon.
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