NEW LONDON, CT – The Maritime College football team found the end zone on each of its first eight drives and put up 543 yards of total offense on Saturday afternoon.  Quarterback Steven Stassi (East Islip, NY) threw for 332 yards and tied a program record with five touchdown passes, as the Privateers (7-2, 5-1 New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference) put up their most points since 2018 in a 55-37 victory over Coast Guard (4-5, 2-4 NEWMAC) at Cadet Memorial Field.

After the Bears scored a touchdown on their opening drive, Maritime needed just two plays to respond.  Devin Cline (Miller Place, NY) raced for a 69-yard TD on the Privateers' second play from scrimmage to tie the game.  Maritime then took its first lead when Stassi connected with Ian Derda (Guilford, CT) on a 23-yard scoring strike that capped an eight-play, 68-yard drive.  A Jack Kellner (Seaford, NY) fumble recovery on the next Coast Guard possession gave the Privateers' offense a short field, and Mario Agyen (Bronx, NY) rumbled in from two yards out for Maritime's third touchdown of the first quarter.

Coast Guard pulled within 21-14 on Joey Armentrout's 24-yard TD pass to Toby Wroe with four seconds left in a high-scoring first quarter.  The Privateers mishandled the ensuing kickoff and the Bears recovered at the Maritime 40.  Three plays later, Armentrout found Amir Baadani for a 42-yard touchdown that leveled the score at 21-21.

Maritime went back in front on an eight-yard pass from Stassi to Luke Caliendo (North Babylon, NY), but Coast Guard again tied it when Armentrout found Matthew LaBouliere in the end zone from 10 yards out.  After taking over at their own 37, the Privateers put together a 14-play, 63-yard drive that ate up 7:14 of clock.  With 14 seconds left in the half, Stassi capped the drive with his third touchdown pass of the day, a six-yard connection with Nate Casaburi (Sayville, NY).

That lead increased to 41-28 on Cline's second rushing TD of the game on the opening drive of the third quarter.  The extra point was blocked, however, and Jael Cuellar returned the blocked kick 91 yards for a defensive two-point conversion, making the score 41-30.  After the defense forced a three-and-out, the Maritime offense competed its seventh consecutive scoring drive with Stassi's second TD pass to Derda.

Early in the fourth quarter, Stassi and Casaburi hooked up for the second time, as Casaburi raced 57 yards to pay dirt, extending the Privateers' advantage to 55-30.  It marked Stassi's second game with five touchdown passes this season.  He also passed for five scores in the win over Anna Maria on Sept. 21.  Coast Guard added a late TD to close out the scoring in the 55-37 Maritime victory.  The 55 points were the Privateers' most in a game since Oct. 20, 2018, when they beat Castleton 68-41.

Stassi completed 80 percent of his passes, finishing 28-for-35.  He also rushed five times for 12 yards.  Cline tallied 111 rushing yards and two TDs on 13 carries.  Casaburi had seven receptions for 112 yards and two touchdowns, while Derda also made seven catches for 98 yards and two scores.  Caliendo, meanwhile, paced the Privateers with eight receptions for 70 yards, and he caught Stassi's other touchdown pass.  Maritime controlled the time of possession, keeping the ball for 36:33, including more than 11 minutes in both the second and third quarters.

Defensively, Kellner led the way with six tackles.  He also had a sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.  Dylan Denicker (Queens, NY) also recorded six tackles, while Nazir Kinsey (Syracuse, NY) broke up three Coast Guard passes.  Danny Latimer (Montgomery, NY) made a 21-yard sack and forced a fumble.

For Coast Guard, Armentrout ended up 22-for-32 for 330 yards and three touchdowns.  LaBouliere recorded nine catches for 133 yards and a score, while Baadani gained 73 yards on four receptions.  He had one receiving touchdown.  Ethan Cumming, meanwhile, paced the Bears with 38 rushing yards on six carries.  He also scored a touchdown.  Patrick McCaskey led Coast Guard with eight tackles, and William Wolf sacked Stassi for one of his seven tackles.

With the victory, Maritime is guaranteed at least second place in the NEWMAC and a spot in the Fusion Bowl against the runner-up from the Conference of New England (CNE).  The Privateers will host No. 20 Springfield (9-0, 6-0 NEWMAC) next Saturday at 12 p.m. with an NCAA Tournament berth on the line.  The winner will clinch the NEWMAC's automatic bid, while the loser will represent the conference in the Fusion Bowl if it doesn't receive an at-large NCAA selection.