By: by Joe Guster, Sports Information Director
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Full NCAA Tournament Bracket (PDF)
NCAA Tournament Central
THROGGS NECK, N.Y. (Nov. 19, 2010) – The Maritime football team will be traveling to Upstate New York this weekend to take on the Alfred Saxons on Saturday, Nov. 20, in the first round of the 2010 NCAA Division III Football Tournament. Kickoff between the Privateers and Saxons is scheduled for noon at Alfred's Merrill Field.
Listen To The Game Live On The Privateer Radio Network
If you can't make the trip up to Alfred to watch the NCAA playoff contest live, Maritime Athletics has got you covered. The Privateer Radio Network will be on site and Maritime's own Matt Gregory will be calling all the action live, with pregame starting at 11:30 a.m. EST. To access the free audio steam of the game click here. Alfred will also have a video stream of the game. That can be accessed by clicking here.
Fan Bus Available For Students, Parents And All Followers Leaving 5 a.m. Saturday
The Maritime Student Life Department has a fan bus leaving at 5 a.m. Saturday morning to take fans up to the football game at Alfred. Please contact Arianne Romeo in Student Life at 718-409-2904. Do so quickly, as the seats are filling up!
How They Got There
The Privateers earned an at-large bid to the program's first ever NCAA Tournament after a perfect regular season. Maritime ran the table and finished with a 10-0 record, including a 7-0 mark in Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC) action. The squad captured the 2010 ECFC Championship after a 20-2 home victory over last year's champion, Norwich. The Privateers emerged out of Pool B (independents and teams from conferences that do not have automatic bids) and was selected as the No. 3 seed in the East Region. Maritime has been receiving votes in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top 25 Poll for the past five weeks.
The Saxons enter the NCAA Tournament making their second consecutive appearance as the champion of the Empire 8 Conference. Alfred earned the conference's automatic bid to the national playoffs. The squad earned the No. 6 seed in the East Region after compiling an 8-2 overall record (5-0 Empire 8). The Saxons earned the Empire 8 crown after a 31-17 home win over Ithaca. Alfred began receiving votes in the AFCA Coaches Poll for the first time this season this past week. In 2009, the Saxons hosted Albright in the first round of the NCAA Tournament and lost, 35-25.
Maritime Earns ECFC Coach Of The Year And Defensive Player Of The Year; 10 Players Named To All-Conference Teams And Six Honorable Mentions
The ECFC announced the year-end awards on Thursday and the Maritime football team was the most decorated program in the eight-team conference. Sixth-year head coach Clayton Kendrick-Holmes was named the ECFC Coach of the Year after leading Maritime to the conference title and the NCAA Tournament with a perfect 10-0 record. Sophomore linebacker Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury) (Westbury, N.Y./ Westbury) earned Defensive Player of the Year honors after leading all defenders with 10.7 tackles per game this season.
Also, a combined 10 players were named to the All-Conference First and Second teams for offense and defense, while an additional six were recognized as honorable mentions:
First Team Offense: Sopohomore Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey)-FB (Franklin Sqaure, N.Y./H. Frank Carey), senior Frank Adamo (Somers, N.Y./Somers)-OL (Somers, N.Y./Somers), senior Angelo Aleo (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian)-OL (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian)
Second Team Offense: Sophomore Erik Heedles (Staten Island, N.Y./New Dorp)-WR (Staten Island, N.Y./New Dorp)
First Team Defense: Junior Rob Gorgy (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata (N.J.))-DL (Hillsborough, N.J./Immaculata), sophomore Ricky McClain (Wantagh, N.Y./Saint Anthony's)-DL (Wantagh, N.Y./St. Anthony's), Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury)-LB, sophomore Pat Lasher (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford)-LB (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford), senior Steve Roman (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph's by the Sea)-DB (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by the Sea)
Second Team Defense: Junior Sean Wiggers (Norwood, N.J./Northern Valley Old Tappan (N.J.))-DB (Norwood, N.J./Northern Valley Old Tappan)
Honorable Mention: Senior Madison Leary (Tavares, Fla./Tavares)-K/WR (Tavares, Fla./Tavares), senior John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's)-RB (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St, Anthony's), sophomore Joe Dickey (Middletown, N.J./Middletown North (N.J.))-QB (Middletown, N.J./Middletown North), sophomores Andrew and Larry Cohen (Islip Terrace, N.Y./East Islip/Central Connecticut State)-OL (Islip Terrace, N.Y./East Islip/Central Connecticut State) sophomore Thomas Boney (Jacksonville, Fla./University Christian (Fla.))-DE (Jacksonville, Fla./University Christian)
Maritime Continues To Receive Votes In National Coaches Poll; No. 9 In ECFC Regional Poll
The Maritime football team is receiving votes in the AFCA National Coaches Top 25 Poll for the fifth straight week. The Privateers have earned 14 votes and sit just five spots out of the top 25 in the nation. To read the release from the AFCA, click here.
For the second-straight week, the Privateers have earned the No. 9 spot in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Lambert Meadowlands Football Poll, this week earning 32 votes and breaking a ninth-ranked tie with Salisbury. To read the full release from the ECAC, click here.
Privateers Ranked Seventh In Nation In Rushing Offense; Top 25 In Four Other Categories
Of all 236 teams in the NCAA Division III, Maritime ranks seventh in the country with 315.4 rushing yards per game throughout the 10 contests thus far. This is the second straight season that Maritime has been ranked in the top-10 in the category, as the squad finished the 2009 campaign with the fourth-best rushing offense.
The Privateers also rank first in the country in sacks allowed, allowing just one sack this season for an average of 1.0. Maritime's 1.6 turnover margin is good for fifth amongst all DIII schools, while their 15.87 yard average on punt returns ranks 13th in the nation. In total defense, the Privateers rank 25th, only allowing an average of 260.6 yards per game throughout the year.
Individually, Barnes ranks 25th in the country with 10.7 tackles per game, while his 1.55 tackles for loss per game is tied for 32nd. Roman and Wiggers are both tied for 73rd in the country with 0.4 interceptions per game.
Vote For Head Coach Clayton Kendrick-Holmes For Liberty Mutual Coach Of The Year
This year, as in years past, the general public will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite coach as the recipient of the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year Award. The top 15 coaches after fan voting ends on Dec. 14 will be eligible for the award.
Currently, Maritime head coach Clayton Kendrick-Holmes sits in fourth place in the country in the Division III category with 3,693 votes. With your help, Coach Holmes can reach remain in the top 15 and be eligible for the award! Log on daily to cast your vote by following this link. Note: one vote per day per e-mail address!
Inside The Series With Alfred
Saturday's NCAA Tournament contest will be the first meeting ever between Maritime and Alfred. The two teams share no common opponents from the 2010 season.
Maritime Privateer Breakdown
The Maritime offense is led by sophomore quarterback Joe Dickey (Middletown, N.J./Middletown North (N.J.)), who has amassed a team-best 129.4 total offensive yards per game. His 64 points this year also leads the team. He has amassed 682 yards on the ground and has thrown for 612 yards on 40-for-91 passing this season. Dickey was a part of 19 touchdowns for the Privateers this year, 10 rushing and 9 passing.
Junior Jamie Spanopoulos (Franklin Square, N.Y./H. Frank Carey) has led the rushing corps for the second-straight season with a team-best 789 yard. He has scored five rushing touchdowns and also caught one. Senior Greg McGough (Edgewater, Md./Blessed Trinity (Ga.))-RB (Edgewater, Md./Blessed Trinity) has ran for 525 yards and four scores, while John Gagliano (Islip Terrace, N.Y./St. Anthony's) has compiled 459 rushing yards and found the end zone six times. Sophomore running back Fritz Jean (Palm Coast, Fla./Palm Coast (Fla.)) (Palm Coast, Fla./Palm Coast) has stepped up both in rushing and receiving, running for 422 yards and five TDs and registering 97 receiving yards with two scores via the pass. Sophomore wide receiver Erik Heedles (Staten Island, N.Y./New Dorp) leads the Privateer receiving corps with 281 receiving yards and six touchdowns.
On defense, the Privateers are led by Keith Barnes (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury), who has a team best 107 total tackles (74 solo and 33 assisted). He has 15.5 tackles for combined losses of 53 yards, while picking up three sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one interception. Classmate Pat Lasher (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) ranks second on the team with 78 total tackles (55 solo and 23 assisted). Lasher has seven tackles for combined losses of 16 yards and has picked off three passes, including one brought back for Maritime's only defensive score of the year.
Scouting The Alfred Saxons
Alfred is coached by 13-year head coach Dave Murray. The Saxons are led by freshman running back Austin Dwyer, who has compiled 1,147 total rushing yards, while finding the end zone six times. Sophomore running back Chris Lopez has ran for 455 yards and five TDs. Junior fullback Nick Clark has scored seven times on the ground for Alfred.
Junior quarterback Tom Secky has passed for 2,253 yards and 21 touchdowns. He has complete 185-of-297 passing attempts and thrown 13 interceptions on the year. Senior Ryan Thon is the team's leading receiver with 759 yards and 11 touchdowns.
On defense, Nick Clark has a team-best 80 tackles (42 solo and 38 assisted) including 7.5 for combined losses of 34 yards. Clark has two sacks, two interceptions and one fumble recovery on the season. Sophomore Mike Raplee has recorded a second-best 69 total tackles (26 solo and 43 assisted) including a team-best 14 for combined losses of 44 yards. Raplee has recorded five sacks and one fumble recovery.
