By: by Joe Guster, Sports Information Director
THROGGS NECK, N.Y. (Oct. 23, 2009) – The third-place Maritime football team will play host to the ECFC's second-place team, Mount Ida, on Saturday, Oct. 24. Kick off between the Privateers and the Mustangs is scheduled for 1 p.m. at Reinhart Field.
Listen Live On The Privateer Radio Network
If you can't make it to Reinhart Field on Saturday, be sure to log on to MaritimeAthletics.com and follow the live audio links, as the game will be broadcasted live on the newly-created Privateer Radio Network. Play-by-play man Matt Gregory will be going on the air 20 minutes before kickoff. Live audio is free for the 2009 season and can be accessed by clicking here.
Maritime To Wear Pink Mouth Guards And Wristbands In Support Of Breast Cancer
On Saturday, the Maritime football team will be sporting pink mouth guards and wristbands, donated by QuickHitch, to show their support to all who have been effected by the deadly condition. QuickHitch, a mouth guard company, began giving away the pink mouth guards to teams this year due to the overwhelming response they have received to do so. To learn more about the company, visit its website at www.quickhitchmouthguard.com.
Playoff Implications Grow As Season Nears Its Conclusion
There may be three weeks left in the regular season, but Saturday's matchup is an important one for both teams, as the Mustangs (3-4 overall, 3-1 ECFC) and the Privateers (5-2 overall, 2-1 ECFC) will be looking to fight their way into the top two spots in the conference to play for the ECFC Championship on Saturday, Nov. 14.
Maritime would move into second place with a win and hold a tiebreaker over Mount Ida should the two schools finish with the same conference record; the Privateers would then face first-place Norwhich and now-fourth-place Gallaudet in the final two weeks. If the Mustangs win, the Privateers must win their last two games to be eligible to play in the championship game due to tie-breaker rules.
Privateers Rank High Among The Nation- And Conference-Best
The Maritime offense currently ranks third in the nation and first in the conference with an average of 335.86 yards per game, while its ECFC-best 40.29 points per game ranks ninth in the country. The offensive line has been strong, as the Privateers' .14 sacks allowed per game is the best mark in the country.
Individually, sophomore Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey)-FB (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) is sixth in the nation and first in the ECFC with his 12.86 points per game, while his 106.00 rushing yards per game is good for 34th in the country and second in the conference.
Barnes Named Week Seven ECFC Defensive Player Of The Week
For the third time this season, sophomore Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury)-LB (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury) was named the ECFC Defensive Player of the Week, this time after his 8.5-tackle performance against Becker on Saturday, Oct. 17.
Barnes' seven solo and three assisted tackles led the Privateers in the victory. Three of those tackles were for combined losses of 18 yards. The 6-0, 240-pounder had an interception and a fumble recovery to go along with two forced fumbles and two sacks.
Barnes was also named Defensive Player of the Week after Week One and Week Three. Maritime has now had a player earn an ECFC weekly honor nine times, a number that leads all other schools in the conference. Four other Privateers have earned accolades from the conference: Spanopoulos was named Offensive Player of the Week in Week Three, Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla./Tavares)-K/WR (Tavares Fla./Tavares) earned Special Teams Player of the Week in Weeks Two and Six , while sophomore Rob Gorgy (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata (N.J.))-DL (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata) got that in Week Three and freshman Travis Scott (Pace, FL/Pace (FL))-RB (Pace, Fla./Pace) earned Rookie of the Week two-straight weeks after Weeks Five and Six.
Spanopoulos Breaks Modern-Maritime Single-Season Touchdown Record
After running in two touchdowns in last week's win over Becker, Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) set the program's new single-season record for touchdowns in a season. The sophomore now has 15 scores in 2009, surpassing the old mark of 13, which was set by former Privateer Michael Smooke (Land O'Lakes, FL/East Lake (FL)) in 2007.
Maritime Privateers Breakdown
The Maritime offense is led by Spanopoulos, who has gained 742 yards on the ground on 150 touches (4.9 yards per carry). Sophomore Anthony Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) has amassed a team-best total offense of 907 yards (475 rushing and 432 passing) for an average of 129.6 yards per game. Gagliano has three rushing touchdowns. The Privateers have gotten rushing touchdowns from Travis Scott (Pace, FL/Pace (FL)) (6 TDs on 282 yards) and freshman Langston Woodie (Bradenton, Fla./Bayshore (Fla.))-RB (Bradenton, Fla./Bayshore) (3 TDs on 158 yards). Anthony's twin-brother John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) has scored five rushing TDs on 150 yards, while backup Joe Salthouse (Chester, N.Y./Chester Academy)-QB (Chester, N.Y./Chester Academy) has run in three with 133 yards rushing. Freshman Fritz Jean (Palm Coast, Fla./Palm Coast (Fla.))-RB (Palm Coast, Fla./Palm Coast) and sophomore John Whittaker (Kingston, NY/Kingston)-FB (Kingston, N.Y./Kingston) each have one rushing TD apiece.
Anthony Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) is 18-for-43 with two interceptions and has amassed 432 passing yards. John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) leads the receiving corps with 138 yards and one score. Maritime also got one receiving touchdown apiece from freshman Eric Heeldes-WR (Staten Island, N.Y./New Dorp) and Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey).
On defense, the Privateers are led by Barnes, who has 53 tackles (44 solo and 18 assisted) including seven for combined losses of 28 yards. Barnes also has two sacks, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. Freshman Ricky McClain (Wantagh, N.Y./Saint Anthony's)-DL (Wantagh, N.Y./St. Anthony's) ranks second on the squad with 28 tackles, including five for combined losses of 28 yards, and he leads Maritime with 2.5 sacks.
The special teams is led by Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla./Tavares), who has kicked all three of Maritime's field goals this season from 25-, 25- and 22-yards. Leary also averages 57.0 yards per kickoff and has had four touchbacks. Punter David Kittinger (Fort Myers, Fla./South Fort Myers (Fla.))-P/K
(Fort Myers, Fla./South Fort Myers) has averaged 34.1 yards per punt and has landed four kicks within the 20-yard line.
Scouting The Mount Ida Mustangs
Second-year head coach Michael Landers bring his Mount Ida squad into Saturday's matchup with a 3-4 overall record, picking up home wins over Gallaudet (23-6 on Sept. 19) and Castleton (39-7 on Oct. 3) and a road victory over Becker (17-6 on Oct. 10). The Mustangs have lost at Bridgewater State (40-29 on Sept. 5), Plymouth State (34-16 on Sept. 12) and Norwich (28-6 on Sept. 26) and fell at home to Springfield, 42-15, last weekend.
Mount Ida is led by sophomore running back Johrone Bunch, who has all of the Mustangs' rushing touchdowns on the season, 10, with 1142 yards on the ground. The squad has split time between two quarterbacks, with senior Mike Cloutier and freshman Scott Drosendahl getting the calls behind center. Cloutier has thrown for 527 yards and four touchdowns, while Drosendahl has amassed 335 passing yards with five touchdowns thrown. Senior Kyle Watkins leads the wideout corps with 379 receiving yards and five touchdowns, while sophomore Nick Lynch has recorded 192 yards with one reception for a touchdown.
On defense, the Mustangs are led by junior middle-linebacker Jordan Edinger, who has a team-high 34.5 tackles (29 solo and 11 assisted) on the season. Senior linebacker David Green ranks second on the team with 26 tackles (20 solo and 12 assisted), while picking up 4.5 tackles for a loss (0.5 sacks), 5 quarterback hurries and one fumble recovery.
The special teams unit is led by Bunch, who also serves as the team's punter. He has amassed 968 yards on 27 punts, for an average of 35.9 yards per kick. Freshman kicker Matt Beal is 2-for-4 on field goal attempts, making 28- and 37-yarders.
Looking Ahead
The Maritime football team will travel to Northfield, Vt. in an important conference matchup against first-place Cadets of Norwich University on Halloween, Saturday, Oct. 31. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at the Cadets' Sabine Field.
