LIVE STATS
LIVE AUDIO

THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – The Maritime football team opens up its 2014 campaign on Friday evening with a non-conference matchup against the William Paterson Pioneers. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. on the newly renovated Reinhart Field.
 
Game Coverage
The Maritime Sports Information Department will be providing LIVE STATS for the event, so fans can follow along with all the action throughout the game.
 
The department will also be providing a LIVE AUDIO stream of the game as Greg Rice and Matthew Falkenbury return for their second season together providing all the in-game action of the contest.

Pre-Game Ceremony
As the first event on the newly renovated Reinhart Field, their will be an on-field ceremony approximately 10 minutes before kickoff. School officials representing the college and athletic staff will be on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to take place at the 50-yard line.
 
All-Time Series
For the third straight season Maritime and William Paterson will face off against one another. The Pioneers lead the all-time series with wins in the first two matchups. In 2012, William Paterson beat Maritime by a 21-14 score in Throggs Neck, before taking last season's matchup by a 49-23 score in Wayne, N.J.
 
In last year's contest, then-junior Kyle Gardner (Amityville N.Y./St. Anthony’s) picked up 67 yards on 11 carries, while Brett McKinney (Westernville, N.Y./Rome Free Academy) collected 59 yards on the ground on 14 handoffs. On special teams, Chris Klass (Nanuet, N.Y./Nanuet ) collected 62 yards on four kickoff returns while Greg Caneparo (Nanuet, N.Y./Nanuet) netted 45 yards on three kickoff returns. Diogo Dietrich (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil/DePaul Catholic) also had a 33-yard field goal in the second quarter.
 
Defensively Maritime was led by Nick Coffiey (Wilmington, Del./Delaware Military Academy), who had six tackles, while Klass was second on the team with five. Duke Alvora (Harrison, N.Y./Harrison) and Kameron Knight (Clayton, N.C./West Johnson) were next in line with four stops each.
 
Head-to-Head

Maritime (0-0, 0-0 ECFC)	Roster	Schedule	Stats (2013)
William Paterson (0-0, 0-0 NJAC)	Roster	Schedule	Stats (2013)

 
 
Scouting the Privateers
Maritime comes off of a 5-5 overall season, including a 5-2 mark in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference. The Privateers enter off of one of the biggest wins in program history as they knocked off a nationally ranked opponent for the first time ever with a 7-6 win over No. 25 Gallaudet in the season finale last year.
 
The offensive unit will see a makeover on most of the offensive line, with the departures of 3/5th's of the starting crew. Senior Casey Boos (West Sayville, N.Y./Sayville), along with juniors J.T. Kennedy (Blauvelt, N.Y./St. Joseph Regional ), Brandon Kuster (Woodstock, N.Y./Kingston) and Joseph Tanguay (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker) will be asked to shoulder much of the load this season on the line.
 
The Privateers will also have a new signal caller this year as Zack Chilcott (Ulster Park, N.Y./Kingston) returns after missing the 2013 season with an injury. He will have plenty of weapons at his disposal this season with the likes of senior fullback Kyle Gardner (Amityville N.Y./St. Anthony’s), who enters off a record-setting season with 961 yards on the ground with six touchdowns. Caneparo will also be a formidable option, with a career-best 321 yards on the ground last year with four touchdowns; he also had the team's lone receiving touchdown in 2013. Sophomore Nick Fischetti (Seaford, N.Y./Seaford) will also be asked to step up this season to replace the void left by the departed senior Frank Laino (Rockaway, N.Y./Fort Hamilton).
 
In regards to wide receivers, Chilcott will also have options with senior Timothy Kazinduka (Carmel, N.Y./Kennedy Catholic), juniors Andrew Short (Covington, La./St. Paul's) and Vincent Jones (Cudjoe Key, Fla./Key West), as well as sophomore Brian Leonard (Selden, N.Y./Centereach) to throw to. Maritime also welcomes in a strong freshman group of receivers as possible options as well.
 
On the defensive side of the ball, Maritime returns most of its starters from a season ago including 10 of his top 11 leading tacklers. Senior Nick Coffiey (Wilmington, Del./Delaware Military Academy) led the unit with 95 tackles, fellow linebacker Kameron Knight (Clayton, N.C./West Johnson) was second with 67 tackles, and senior defensive lineman Hugh O'Brien (Westbury, N.Y./Westbury) was third with 57 tackles.
 
O'Brien also led the unit with 15 tackles for a loss and had eight sacks to lead the team as well. Coffiey, Knight, O'Brien and senior Duke Alvora (Harrison, N.Y./Harrison) all had a pair of fumble recoveries as well. The defensive backs will be highlighted by Klass and junior Beau Warrington (Milford, Del./Sussex Technical), both coming off of solid seasons in 2013.
 
Special teams saw Diogo Dietrich (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil/DePaul Catholic) receive conference accolades as the league's best special teamer following a season in which he led the team with 51 points. He was 9-for-12 in field goal opportunities, while converting 24-for-26 PATs. Sophomore John Arny (Metuchen, N.J./Metuchen) will handle punting duties once again for Maritime as he averaged 35.9 yards per punt, including 11 within the opponent's 20-yard line.
 
Scouting the Pioneers
After finishing 2013 with a 3-7 overall record and a 1-6 record in the very challenging New Jersey Athletic Conference. The Pioneers return 41 letter winners from a season ago under Jerry Flora, who enters his eighth season at the helm of William Paterson. Included in the 41 returnees, are 11 starters returning from a season ago (five on offense/six on defense).
 
Amongst the key offensive returners are offensive linemen Jalen Hayes, Ryan Sibole and Jake Stockton-Rossini. Meanwhile, junior running backs Darius Kersey (61 carries, 207 yards, 5 touchdowns in 2013) and Matt Deiana (79 carries, 379 yards, 1 touchdown in 2013) will look to carry much of the offense as upperclassmen.
 
On the defensive side of the ball, senior defensive lineman Pat Thomas enters off of an All-NJAC Second Team selection after registering 76 tackles, three sacks, and one fumble recovery last season. He along with senior linebacker Ben Allen were amongst the team leaders, as he recorded 81 tackles and three sacks last season.
 
Special teams saw senior Robert Sinegra collect All-Conference Second Team honors as a junior after connecting on 75.0% of his field goal attempts while converting 29-of-20 PATs. Jerome Alexander will be the team's primary kickoff returner, as he averaged 31.6 yards-per-return as a rookie last year.
 
Up Next
After Friday evening's contest, Maritime will have a quick turnaround as they play host to the Mass. Maritime Buccaneers on Thursday (September 11) at 7 p.m. The contest will be the 7th Annual Chowder Bowl as the Privateers look to regain bragging rights after falling in last season's season opener to the Buccaneers.
 
The game will also be Hero Appreciation Night, as the team and staff will honor those who serve in all military branches, as well as the New York Police Department, Fire Department of New York, and the Port Authority of New York/New Jersey.
 
William Paterson will open up its 2014 home slate with a non-conference contest against Bridgewater State at Wightman Stadium in Wayne.