Football Stuns Coast Guard For Best Start Ever

NEW LONDON, CT : Anna Maria senior quarterback Alex Cohen (Plymouth, MA) threw a 27-yard pass to sophomore wide receiver Deandre Wallace (Waterbury, CT) with 21 seconds remaining in the game to propel the Anna Maria College football team to a 29-24 victory at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Saturday in New London, Connecticut. With the win, the AMCATS are now 2-1 for the first time in team history.

THE BASICS:                                     

• Date: Saturday, September 25, 2021
• Score: Anna Maria 29, Coast Guard 24
• Records: Bears of C.G.A. (2-2) | AMCATS of Anna Maria (2-1)

STANDOUTS:

• Cohen threw for 227 yards on 14 of 31 passing, with two touchdown passes and two interceptions. The senior quarterback also scrambled for 25 yards on seven carries.
• Wallace eclipsed the 100-yard receiving plateau for the second straight week, with four catches totaling 113 yards and two touchdown receptions.
• Anna Maria junior wide receiver David Robinson (Boston, MA) caught four passes for 95 yards and a score.
• Anna Maria sophomore linebacker Sam Jakana (Coto De Caza, CA) led a stellar defensive effort, with ten solo tackles including four for a loss.   
• Coast Guard junior quarterback Tafari Wall (Richmond, VA) threw for 272 yards on 19 of 32 passing with two touchdowns and one pick.  
• Coast guard junior running back Jared Colletti (Kintersville, PA) rushed for 111 yards on 28 carries with one touchdown.
• The AMCATS' football team, in existence since 2009, has started the season at 2-1 for the first time in program history.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Anna Maria's first drive resulted in a 19-yard touchdown pass from Cohen to Robinson just 3:21 into the game.     
• Down 7-3 late in the first quarter, Coast Guard was lining up for a 49-yard field goal attempt. Anna Maria grad student defensive lineman Jude Sampson (Waterbury, CT) blocked the kick, which was recovered and returned 60 yards by junior Donavin Johnson (Kissimmee, FL) to give the AMCATS a 14-3 lead.
• Up 14-10 midway through the second, Anna Maria sophomore kicker Ryan Kent (Marlton, NJ) made a 24-yard field goal to put the AMCATS ahead 17-10 going into halftime. Kent remains perfect on the season on field goals.
• Down 24-17 late in the third quarter, Anna Maria senior quarterback Matthew Sapere (Old Lyme, CT) got into the game and found Wallace running up the sideline, hitting the receiver midstride for a 63- touchdown completion to pull the AMCATS to within one after a blocked extra-point.
• Still trailing late in the fourth, Anna Maria got the ball back with 1:36 remaining. Cohen – back in the game – kept his composure, engineering an eight play drive and finding junior tight end Malik Kirnon (Brockton, MA) for a 20-yard completion on third down to advance to the Coast Guard 27. With time running out, Cohen spiked the ball, and then on second down, he found Wallace leaping into the endzone for the 27-yard game-winning score.
• Coast Guard attempted to setup a Hail Mary play in the closing seconds, but Anna Maria senior defensive back Armstrong Antoine (Stratford, CT) broke up a pass on first down and Sampson iced it with a five-yard sack on Wall with three seconds left. The Bears attempted a shovel-pass lateral as time ran out, only for the game to end on an incompletion.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Total offensive yards were 424-374 in favor of the Bears.
• Time of possession was 34:32-25:28, going Coast Guard's way.

UP NEXT:

Anna Maria will be back on the field next Saturday when they travel to Keystone College for a 1:30 p.m. game against the Giants in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference opener for both schools.    

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