LIVE VIDEO – Maritime at Norwich – Oct. 31 at 1:30 p.m. - FREE

THROGGS NECK, N.Y. (Oct. 30, 2009) – The Maritime football team (6-2, 3-1 ECFC) will travel to Northfield, Vt. on Saturday for a very important matchup with the first-place Cadets of Norwich University (5-3, 4-0 ECFC). Action is set to get underway at 1:30 p.m. at Norwich's Sabine Field.

 

Watch Saturday's Matchup Live On The Northeast Sports Network

            The Northeast Sports Network will be broadcasting the game live on the internet on Saturday for free! Just follow this link to access the webcast, which will begin moments before kickoff.

 

ECFC Playoff Hunt Heating Up

            Four teams are vying for a spot in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) Championship game against Norwich, which will be held on Saturday, Nov. 14, at the No. 1 seed's home field. Right now, the Cadets are in first place with an undefeated 4-0 record and have clinched a spot in the championship game with wins and tie-breakers over Gallaudet, Mount Ida and Husson.

 

Maritime is right behind Norwich in second place with a 3-1 mark, but cannot be eliminated or clinch a spot this weekend. The other three teams each have two losses and one team will definitely be eliminated this week – the loser of the Husson at Mount Ida game. If the Privateers defeat Norwich, Mount Ida is out regardless of their result against the Eagles.

 

            The Privateers chances can be helped immensely if Mount Ida wins that game because Husson is currently the only team to hold a tie-breaker over Maritime, but would be eliminated with that loss. In turn, the Privateers own a tie-breaker over the Mustangs. The results of Week Nine will make it easier to sort out possible scenarios for the final weekend, but as you can see the race for the last spot in the championship game is tight.

 

Privateers Rank High Among The Nation- And Conference-Best

Fifth-year head coach Clayton Kendrick-Holmes and the Privateers have seen their rankings improve amongst all NCAA Division III football programs. Maritime's 351.88 rushing yards per game currently ranks third in the country, while its 40.5 points per game is good for ninth. The great work that first-year assistant Eric Ludwig has done with the offensive line has led the Privateers to the top overall ranking in the country in sacks allowed per game, a miniscule 0.13.

 

 

 

Individually, sophomore Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey)-FB (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) is the number one scorer among all D-III players with 14.25 points per game, 0.54 better than second place Ben Wartman from St. Thomas in Minnesota. Spanopoulos also ranks 27th in the nation with 109.12 rushing yards per game.

 

Spanopoulos And Kittinger Earn Week Eight ECFC Honors

            Sophomores Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) and David Kittinger (Fort Myers, Fla./South Fort Myers (Fla.))-K/P (Fort Myers, Fla./South Fort Myers) both earned weekly honors from the ECFC after their Week Eight performances in the 42-0 shutout over Mount Ida on Oct. 24.

 

            Spanopoulos recorded a career-high four touchdowns on 131 yards in the Privateers' 42-0 home victory over Mount Ida. The 5-9, 228-pounder got 18 carries in the victory for an average of 7.3 yards per carry. The fullback scored on runs of 16, 11, 2 and 5 yards and has recorded a touchdown in every game thus far for Maritime.

 

Kittinger was a perfect 6-for-6 in PAT kicks in Maritime's 42-0 win over Mount Ida on Saturday after fully taking over the kicking duties for the Privateers. The sophomore also recorded one punt for 47 yards and on seven kickoffs, amassed 365 yards for an average of 52.1 yards per kick.

 

            These add to the ECFC-leading weekly honors received by Maritime, as the Privateers have now had a player earn accolades 11 times this season. Spanopoulos also earned Offensive Player of the Week honors after Week Three, while fellow sophomore Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury)-LB (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury) earned Defensive Player of the Week accolades three times (Weeks One, Three and Seven). Classmate Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla./Tavares)-K/WR (Tavares, Fla./Tavares) was named ECFC Special Teams Player of the Week twice (Weeks Two and Six) and freshman Travis Scott (Pace, FL/Pace (FL))-RB (Pace, Fla./Pace) earned back-to-back Rookie of the Week honors after Weeks Five and Six. Sophomore Rob Gorgy (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata (N.J.))-DL (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata) also got Special Teams Player of the Week honors after Week Three.

 

Maritime Privateers Breakdown

            The Maritime offense is led by Spanopoulos, who has scored a single-season program-best 18 touchdowns in 2009. The sophomore has gained 873 yards on the ground on 168 touches (5.2 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 1077 yards (624 rushing and 453 passing) for an average of 134.6 yards per game. Gagliano has four rushing touchdowns. The Privateers have gotten rushing touchdowns from Travis Scott (Pace, FL/Pace (FL)) (6 TDs on 300 yards) and freshman Langston Woodie (Bradenton, Fla./Bayshore (Fla.))-RB (Bradenton, Fla./Bayshore) (3 TDs on 174 yards). Anthony's twin-brother John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's)-RB (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) has scored six rushing TDs on 233 yards, while backup Joe Salthouse (Chester, N.Y./Chester Academy)-QB (Chester, N.Y./Chester Academy) has run in three with 166 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 19-for-46 with two interceptions and has amassed 453 passing yards. John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) leads the receiving corps with 159 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 63 tackles (53 solo and 20 assisted) including eight for combined losses of 31 yards. Barnes also has two sacks, two interceptions, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. Senior-captain Mike Oehl-LB (Nesconset, N.Y./Smithtown West) ranks second on the team with 32.5 tackles (28 solo and nine assisted), while freshman Ricky McClain (Wantagh, N.Y./Saint Anthony's)-DL (Wantagh, N.Y./St. Anthony's) is third with 28 tackles, including five for combined losses of 28 yards, and he leads Maritime with 2.5 sacks.

 

Maritime's special teams is led by punter David Kittinger (Fort Myers, Fla./South Fort Myers (Fla.)), who has averaged 34.8 yards per punt and has landed four kicks within the 20-yard line with a season-long kick of 67 yards. Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla./Tavares) has also been a part of the special teams, kicking 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.

 

Scouting The Norwich Cadets

            Fifth-year head coach Shawn McIntyre and the Norwich Cadets come into Saturday's matchup with a 5-3 overall record and are a perfect 4-0 in ECFC action. Norwich is riding a five-game winning streak defeating Mount Ida (28-6 on Sept. 26) and Becker (42-2 on Oct. 3) at home, Gallaudet (14-7 on Oct. 10) and Husson (20-19 on Oct. 17) on the road and most recently Anna Maria (48-0 on Oct. 24) at home.

 

            The Cadets are led in scoring by freshman running back Orwin Etkins, who has scored eight touchdowns (seven rushing and one receiving) after compiling 296 yards on the ground and 66 yards via the air. Sophomore running back Andrew Fulford leads the team with 498 rushing yards and has scored five touchdowns on the season. Freshman quarterback Kris Sabourin has completed 24 passes on 81 attempts and has connected for three touchdowns and four interceptions. The wideout corps is led by freshman Chris Denton, who has amassed 81 yards on six catches and has scored one touchdown.

 

            On defense, Norwich relies on junior linebacker Rocco DiMeco, who leads the team with 58 tackles (30 solo and 28 assisted), while senior defensive end Reza Afsarmanesh ranks second with 52 tackles (30 solo and 22 assisted). 14.5 of Afsarmanesh's tackles have been for combined losses of 78 yards, a number that leads the Cadets.

 

            The special teams game is led by junior Ryan Kelly, who is 3-for-5 in field goals this season, hitting 35-, 23- and 20-yarders. Kelly has also amassed 1572 yards on 38 kickoffs for an average of 41.4 yards per kick. Junior punter Brian Segit has had 48 punts for 1598 yards, an average of 33.3 yards per punt and has had three touchbacks and 19 balls land within the opponent's 20-yard line.

 

A Look Ahead

Maritime's regular season-finale on Friday, Nov. 6, against Gallaudet at home can possibly have a playoff berth on the line. The Bison are currently 3-2 in the ECFC and sit in third place with a bye from conference-action this weekend. Kickoff between the Privateers and their foes from Washington, D.C. is scheduled for 7 p.m. under the lights at Reinhart Field.