Links: Box Score //
Highlights
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College football program scored the second most points in school history on Saturday afternoon, trouncing the visiting Mayville State University Comets (NAIA), 76-7, from Duane Stadium.
Merrimack improved to 2-2 on the season while Mayville State fell to 1-2. The Warriors also maintained a perfect record at home (2-0). The Warriors' 76-point output was just the third 70-point game in Merrimack's history, and the most points since Merrimack posted a school-record 81 points against Saint Anselm in 2012. Saturday's point total marks the most ever during the seven-year tenure of Merrimack head coach
Dan Curran.
Via a 21-point first quarter and 19 more in the second quarter, Merrimack started the afternoon with 40 unanswered points. The hosts held a 46-7 lead at halftime, and scored 30 more over the final two quarters to shutout the Comets in the final 30 minutes. Sophomore quarterback
Christian Carter threw for four touchdowns in an abbreviated outing, sophomore running back
Matt Brehon totaled 175 yards on just six carries with three scores while sophomore
Johnny Rosario and redshirt-senior
Marquis Spence posted two touchdown receptions each.
Saturday's contest also carried special meaning as the program recognized former team captain and All-American Artis Holt '14 before the game. Holt tragically passed away earlier this year, and the team welcomed his family back to campus on Saturday, conducting a pregame ceremony in Artis' honor.
The Essentials
Score: Merrimack 76, Mayville State 7
Records: Merrimack (2-2) | Mayville State (1-2)
Location: Duane Stadium | North Andover, Mass.
Duration 3:16
Attendance: 3,123
How It Happened
- After two drives ended in punts to start the day, Merrimack's defense got the Warriors off to a strong start. Mayville attempted a wide-receiver pass that was picked off by junior Bryce Smith, who returned the interception 21 yards for a touchdown
- Merrimack put two more touchdowns on the board in the first quarter on a seven-yard strike from Carter to Spence, which was followed by a three-yard run for redshirt-sophomore Malachi McFadden
- In the second quarter, graduate student Cam Hayes relieved Carter for a third-and-one on the goal line, rushing the ball in for his first score of the day. Rosario stepped up in the second quarter, hauling in a 40-yard touchdown and a 53-yard touchdown from Carter. The second-year wideout's last score gave the Warriors their 46-7 edge
- Brehon was the star of the second half for Merrimack, as three of his six carries end in scores. The New Haven, Conn. native took the first play of the half 70 yards, breaking multiple tackles on his way to a long TD. He added a 16-yard scoring run in the third quarter, as well
- The fourth quarter saw the Warriors add a special teams touchdown to their day; redshirt-sophomore Darion McKenzie took a punt 76 yards to the house with just under 10 minutes left in the game. Brehon brought Merrimack's total over 70 points later in the quarter, scampering 73 yards to account for Merrimack's last touchdown of the day
Individual Highlights
- Carter's day ended in the second half, but he was still able to throw for over 200 yards and four touchdowns. He has completed at least 70 percent of his passes in both of his starts at home this season. He posted his second four-touchdown game through the air, as well
- Brehon averaged nearly 30 yards-per-carry on the day; His 77-yard and 73-yard touchdown runs were the eighth and ninth longest rushing touchdowns in school history, respectively
- Rosario's two touchdowns matched his career high set last season. Spence now has a team-best five touchdowns on the year, one shy of his career high
- On the other side of the ball, Merrimack totaled a season-best five sacks, led by a two-sack day for sophomore Cory Hagerman.
- Redshirt-senior Enrique McFarlane registered his best game of the season, totaling team highs in total tackles (8), solo stops (6) and 3.5 tackles-for-loss
- Smith notched his first career interception return for a touchdown, snatching his second career INT
- In addition to a punt-return-for-TD, Merrimack's special teams posted a punk block via junior Nick Pallotta
Notes & Numbers
- Merrimack's 76 points fell just six points shy of tying the school record, which occurred in October of 2012 against Saint Anselm. Saturday marked the third-ever game that Merrimack scored at least 70
- As a team, Merrimack averaged a school-record 10.1 yards-per-carry on the ground. The Warriors ran for a total of 352 yards, the sixth highest total in school annals
- Merrimack finished with 10 total touchdowns, the third time that the program has posted at least 10 TDs in a game
- Saturday marked the first ever game between Merrimack and Mayville State
Up Next
The Warriors visit Lehigh University this weekend, taking on the Mountain Hawks for a 12:30 p.m. kickoff out in Bethlehem, Pa.
