BUZZARDS BAY, Mass -- Bucs football began their season on Friday night at home against SUNY Maritime in the 17th playing of the Chowder Bowl. At the end of the night, the Privateers won their fourth-straight Chowder Bowl by a touchdown, 21-14.

The Basics

Final: Privateers 21, Buccaneers 14

Records: Mass Maritime 0-1

               SUNY Maritime 1-0

Inside The Numbers

Mass Maritime

• Quarterback Evan Pierce completed six of nine passes for 69 yards. On the ground, the junior scored the Bucs first touchdown of the season.
• Sophomore quarterback Joseph Schwartz also scored on the ground from a yard out and had two carries for three yards.
• Senior captain Zach Proctor led the Buccaneers with 81 yards on the ground on 20 carries. 
• Sophomore wideout Santiago Martinez led the receiving corps with 30 yards on one catch. Brooks Moss has two catches for 24 yards, and Brennan Keefe had three grabs for 15 yards.
• Defensively, Jackson Mahoney led the Bucs with nine tackles, a tackle for loss, and a pass breakup.
• Kyle Stephens and Mac Kromenhoek recorded a sack apiece in the loss. 
• Sophomore linebacker Ryan Halloran had seven tackles in the game with two tackles for loss. 
• On special teams, freshman placekicker Grayson Smith converted both of his PAT attempts in his collegiate debut.
• Punter James Sansone kicked three times for 146 yards, an average of 48.7 yards, and pinned the Privateers inside their own 20 yard line on two occassions. 
• Junior linebacker John Shields made an impact on special teams, blocking a 25-yard field goal attempt by SUNY near the end of the first half.

SUNY Maritime

• Quarterback Will Pickett completed 13 of 24 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown. On the ground, Pickett ran 20 times for 94 yards and two touchdowns.
• Running back Joshua Rogers led all ball carriers with 98 yards on 18 carries.
• Wideout Nate Casaburi hauled in seven balls for 97 yards and a touchdown.
• Defensively, Jack Kellner led all players with 10 tackles and a tackle for loss.
• On special teams, placekicker Gianni D'Agnese converted his only PAT and had his only field goal attempt blocked. 
• Punter Owen Cunningham kicked three times for 139 yards, an average of 46.3 yards per punt, and put the Bucs inside their own 20-yard line twice. 

How It Happened

SUNY got the bal lto open the 17th Chowder Bowl after the Buccaneers won the toss and deferred to the second half. On their first drive, Pickett and the Privateers marched down the first 54 yards before they were stopped on third down. On 4th and two, SUNY went for it and needing just two yards, Pickett went for 19 to the end zone to open the scoring. The Privateers led, 7-0, less than three minutes into the game, and they carried that lead for the remainder of the first quarter.

To open the second quarter of play, the Buccaneers were forced to punt, but gave the Privateers great field position at the Mass Maritime 37-yard line. SUNY proceeded to go 37 yards in seven plays and scored on a Pickett to Casaburi 15-yard completion. On a botched snap on the PAT, SUNY completed a pass for the two-point conversion and led 15-0 with 7:44 to play in the half. On the Buccaneers ensuing drive, the offense started to click, as they drove 49 yards on 12 plays and took 6:49 off the clock. They capped the drive off with a one-yard touchdown run by Pierce to cut the lead to eight, 15-7. On the Privateers next drive, they got down to the Bucs eight-yard line and were forced to send out the field goal unit on fourth and goal from the eight. D'Agnese proceeded to have his attempt blocked by Shields to keep the score 15-7 at the break.

The Buccaneers received the second-half opening kickoff and went three-and-out on their first drive. The teams traded short possessions to open the second half until the Privateers took over with 9:22 left in the third and went 80 yards on 10 plays over 5 minutes and 21 seconds. Pickett scored his second rushing touchdown of the night from a yard out. The Bucs went on to block the PAT but it was called back for a penalty and SUNY decided to go for two. The Bucs foiled the two-point attempt and the Privateers led 21-7 with four minutes left in the third. On the Buccaneers next drive, they took over at the SUNY 38-yard line thanks to a 40-yard kickoff return by Keefe. The Buccaneers took advantage of the situation and went those 38 yards in five plays, capping the drive off with a one-yard touchdown run by Schwartz to cut the deficit to seven points, 21-14 at the end of three quarters of play.

The Buccaneers had their opportunities in the fourth to tie the game, but were unable to do so. On their final offensive drive of the game, Mass Maritime went 48 yards on eight plays and were stopped on fourth down by the SUNY defense. The Privateers ran out the clock and won the 17th playing of the Chowder Bowl in Buzzards Bay by a final of 21-14.

What's Next

The Buccaneers travel to Dean College on September 13th to take on the Bulldogs at noon in conference play.