Leone and McCarthy Connect for Five Touchdowns as Football Celebrates Homecoming with 48-20 Win Over Mass. Maritime
Framingham, Mass. — Junior wide receiver James McCarthy (Newton, Mass.) caught five touchdown passes from senior Kurt Leone (Marshfield, Mass.) as the Framingham State University football team defeated Massachusetts Maritime Academy 48-20 in a New England Football Conference Bogan Division tilt played this afternoon at Framingham on Homecoming and Parent's Weekend. With the win, the Rams improve to 2-0 in the division and 4-1 overall. The loss is the first divisional loss for Buccaneers, who are now 1-1 in the Bogan and 2-3 overall.
McCarthy, who led all receivers in the game with 14 catches for a career-high 212 yards, shattered three Framingham State single game records. His five touchdown receptions set a new record for touchdowns in a game and receiving touchdowns in a game. He also set a new single game point record with 30 points on the day.
Leone completed 28 of 31 attempts for 320 yards with only one interception and tied the FSU record for touchdown passes in a game with five. For their efforts today, McCarthy and Leone were the co-winners of the 2010 Calder Award which is presented annually in memory of former football captain John Calder.
Mass. Maritime opened the game with great field possession on the Framingham 42-yard line. The Buccaneers moved the ball down to the Framingham 13-yard line setting up Brandon Rodrigues (Brockton, Mass.) for a 30-yard field goal attempt which was blocked by the Framingham defense. Senior cornerback Brent Loveless (Billerica, Mass.) recovered the block giving the Rams the ball on their own 10-yard line.
The Rams moved the ball to the Mass. Maritime 39 yard line setting up the game's first touchdown – a 39-yard strike from Leone to McCarthy. Senior Phil Cosmos (Natick, Mass.) nailed the extra point and the Rams led 7-0 5:06 remaining in the first.
After a three and out by Mass. Maritime, the Rams were moving the ball down the field and were in position for another score. Their drive ended when freshman defensive back Stefan Gustafson (Plymouth, Mass.) intercepted Leone's pass and returned it 75 yards for the game tying score.
Framingham State would score touchdowns on their next five possessions, a two-yard run by Melikke Van Alstyne (Salem, Mass.) and four TD passes from Leone to McCarthy, to take a commanding 41-14 lead with 2:04 remaining in the third quarter. Leone hit McCarthy with a 64 yard pass late in the second quarter and with passes of 24, 5, and 28 yards for touchdowns in the third quarter.
The Buccaneers second score of the game came in the third quarter as quarterback Mike Stanton (Quincy, Mass.) hit Jonathan Emond (Green Harbor, Mass.) with a 64 yard touchdown pass that at the time made the score 27-14 in favor of the Rams.
After a 38-yard run from senior Adam Emery (Dorchester, Mass.), junior Jerome Watson (Burlington, Mass.) scampered in the end zone from 28 yards out for the Rams final score with 2:32 left in the game.
The Buccaneers Brian Sullivan (Quincy, Mass.) scored on a three yard run with 11 seconds remaining in the game to reach the final margin.
Stanton finished the game 11 of 22 for 153 yards and score despite being sacked four times by the Rams defense, while Emond finished with three catches for 101 yards and a score.
The Rams amassed 528 yards of total offense in the game to the Buccaneers 322 yards as they held a 208-79 yard advantage in rushing yards and a 320-243 yard edge in the passing game
The Rams return to action next Saturday as they travel to Fitchburg State at 1:30 p.m., while the Buccaneers travel to Worcester State at noon.