Football: AMCATS Fall in Season Finale

Paxton, Mass. – The Anna Maria College football team fell to the visiting Hawks of Becker College, 24-19 on Friday night at AMCAT Field in Eastern Collegiate Football Conference action. With the win the Hawks move to 3-7, 2-5 ECFC and the AMCATS finish the 2013 campaign with a 2-8, 1-6 ECFC mark.

In a pre-game ceremony the AMCATS football staff recognized twenty-four seniors for their outstanding contribution to the Anna Maria football program.

Senior Robert Small (Sleepy Hollow, NY) rushed for 190 yards on 29 carries with two touchdowns while quarterback Gregory McGoldrick (Brooklyn, NY) threw for 77 yards and a touchdown. Senior linebacker Tony Valente (Wilmington, Mass.) posted 13 tackles (8 solo) and junior Kevin Card (Deer Park, NY) also notched double-digit stops with 12, including a sack.

The Hawks were led by their senior play caller Robert Baker (Monroe, Conn.), who threw for 220 yards and three touchdown. Baker's main targets were sophomore DeJahn Dawkins (East Hartford, Conn.) and  freshman Brandon Mullings (Naples, Fla.). Dawkins had a pair of touchdowns and 106 receiving yards, while Mullings added a touchdown.  Running back Matthew Romasco rushed for 181 yards on 20 carries.

Small opened the scoring with a seven yard run with 8:08 left in the first. Senior Demetri Underwood (Lynn, Mass.)set up the score with an 45-yard intercepted of Baker. Anna Maria could not convert a 2-point play and the score stood 6-0 AMC.

The Hawks tied the game with :29 remaining in the first stanza. Becker put together a 12-play, 92 yard drive culminating with a  Baker 3-yard strike to Mullings to knot the game at 6-6.

Baker would add a pair of TD's in the second quarter to Dawkin to push the lead to 18-6 heading into intermission.

Anna Maria would take over on down on the AMC 44-yard line to start their fourth possession of the 3^rd quarter. A pair of small runs by Small and a 5-yard reception by senior Gregory Caldwell (Springvale, Maine) would set the AMCATS up at the Becker 40-yard line. Small would break free from the line of scrimmage and race twenty yards to the BC 20. McGoldrick would thread a nifty pass to Ricard for the score on the very next play. The AMCATS couldn't convert the extra point as the score stood at 18-12 with 2:10 to play in the quarter.

AMC would erase the 12-point deficit and take the lead early in the fourth quarter. The AMCATS put together a 10-play, 61-yard drive that covered 3:18. Small would once again put his team on his back as he was responsible for 47-yards during the drive including the 1-yard plunge to tie the game 18-all. Diaz's extra point would split the uprights and AMC would forge ahead 19-18.

Becker answered on the very next series. Junior running back Capri Corn (New Rochelle, NY) would string a 14-yard return to the Becker 35 and the AMCATS would be assessed  a costly pass interference  penalty as Becker would now have the ball at midfield. Running back Matthew Romasco (Port St. Lucie, FL) would explode off the line of scrimmage for 39 yards and freshman Romario Vincent (Brooklyn, NY) would finish the drive with a 4-yard TD run to give Becker back the lead and the win at 24-19.