Framingham, Mass. — Senior fullback Jim Bower (South Paris, ME) rushed for 285 yards and three touchdowns as the Maine Maritime Academy Mariners defeated the Framingham State University Rams 50-26 this afternoon in New England Football Conference Bogan Division action at Maple Street Field.   

Jim Bower moved into 2nd place on MMA's All-Time rushing list with 5,216 career yards, passing Kirk Matthieu who rushed for 5,107 yards. Bower had also moved into a tie for 14th place on the NCAA DIII All-Time career yards rushing list. 

    

The Rams are now 5-2 on the season and the loss is their first divisional loss this season.  Maine Maritime, who is now 5-1 overall on the year, Framingham State, and Massachusetts Maritime Academy are all now tied atop the Bogan Division standings at 3-1 in the division.

Maine Maritime's rushing offense was the difference as they rushed for 523 yards in the game and scored seven rushing touchdowns.  The Rams rushed for only 167 yards, but their passing offense picked up 227 yards in the game compared to no passing yards for the Mariners, who only attempted two passes on the day.

Bower rushed for 285 yards on 31 carries with touchdown runs of 49 yards, 27 yards and 67 yards, while junior quarterback Matt Rende (Augusta, ME) rushed for 182 yards on 14 carries with three touchdowns.  Senior Todd Murphy (Middlesex, VT) rushed for 47 yards on six carries with a score.

Freshman Melikke Van Alstyne (Salem, Mass.) led the Rams with 162 all-purpose yards, 136 rushing and 26 receiving, while senior quarterback Kurt Leone (Marshfield, Mass.) completed 17 of 29 passes for 218 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.  Senior Shawn Miller (Tyngsboro, MA) caught four passes for 97 yards including a 61-yard touchdown reception, while junior James McCarthy (Newton, Mass.) caught six passes for 49 yards and a score.

The Mariners took the opening kickoff and moved the ball down the field for the game's first score – a 27 yard touchdown run by Rende.  The Mariners went for two and Evan Barker's (Turner, ME) pass attempt failed giving the Mariners a 6-0 with 12:36 left in the first.

Senior runningback David Leach (Chelmsford, Mass.) took a direct snap from center and scored his first touchdown of the season from two yards out to tie the score at 6-6 with 14:41 remaining in the second quarter.

Maine answered on their next possession as Bower scored his first of the game to retake the lead. Bower also rushed for the two-point conversion giving Maine a 14-6 advantage with 12:51 left in the half.

Framingham's offense responded with two touchdowns – an eight-yard TD reception by McCarthy and Miller's 61-yard TD grab and run – to take a 20-14 lead with 4:56 remaining in the first half.

It would take the Mariners just three plays to regain the lead as Rende scored on a 65 yard run with 3:42 left in the half that put them up 21-20.  The Rams had an opportunity to put points on the board as time expired, but Phil Cosmos' (Natick, Mass.) 37-yard field goal attempt went wide left.

The Rams struck first in the second half as Leone capped a nine play 66 yard drive with a nine yard TD pass to freshman Mike Cochrane (Plainville, Mass.) giving the Rams a 26-21 lead with 10:09 remaining in the third.

The Mariners rushing attach would take over from there as Bower scored twice in the third quarter and Rende and Murphy added fourth quarter touchdowns to reach the final margin.

Sophomore linebacker Joel Chadbourne (Westbrook, ME) led the Mariner defense with 11 tackles including seven solo stops.  Sophomore James Muirhead (Middleboro, Mass.) led the Rams with a game-high 12 tackles, while senior Joe Treacy (Wakefield, Mass) added 11.

The Rams return to action next Saturday as they travel to Westfield State at 1:30 p.m., while the Mariners host Massachusetts Maritime next Saturday at noon.