Salve Regina honors seniors, military on Nov. 9

The Salve Regina football team will honor the military before, during and after its NEFC showdown with the United States Coast Guard.
The Salve Regina football team will honor the military before, during and after its NEFC showdown with the United States Coast Guard.

U.S. Coast Guard Academy
vs.
Salve Regina 

Saturday, Nov. 9
Gaudet Field (Middletown, R.I.)
12:00 p.m.

Live Stats/Video
Live Audio
Listen at WADK 1540 AM
Directions to Gaudet Field
Game Notes - PDF Version
Coach's Show - Featuring Benjamin Barrett, Alex Leddy and Rory McEntee

 


 

Setting the Scene

Salve Regina is coming off a record-setting performance against Maine Maritime last weekend. The Seahawks set a new program record with 604 total yards of offense while juniors Dan Buonocore (Mahwah, N.J.) and Steven Wilken (Ringwood, N.J.) each put up career numbers in SRU's 42-8 victory. Buonocore ran for a career-best 134 yards on 23 carries while Wilken threw for 347 yards, completed 21-of-31 (67%) passes, including three touchdown passes while running one in himself. The defense held an explosive MMA run offense to just 189 yards on the ground, almost 200 yards less than its season average.  

Coast Guard enters today's contest off a bye-week after falling to Endicott, 33-7, two weeks ago. 

The Series

The Seahawks and Bears will meet for the just the third time in program history. The last time the two teams faced each other was September 8, 2001. Salve Regina defeated Coast Guard 17-14. In fact, the Seahawks won the only other meeting, a 36-6 win on Sept. 9, 2000. 

This Week in the NEFC

Nov. 9
Coast Guard at Salve Regina 12 p.m.
Nichols at Curry 1 p.m.
Western New England at Endicott 5 p.m.
Maine Maritime at MIT 5:30 p.m.

A Day of Honoring

Salve Regina football honors its 12 seniors in their final regular season home game of the year. Over the last four years, the group of seniors have helped the Seahawks to an overall record of 29-11. During their sophomore season, the current seniors enjoyed a 26-6 win over Worcester St. in the ECAC-North West Bowl championship game. Last season, Salve Regina advanced to the NEFC championship game against Framingham State. 

Over the last four years, the Seahawks have improved in every aspect of the game. Since their freshman year, the team went from averaging 132.7 yards rushing to 206.8 this year, with at least two more games to play. This season, the Seahawks are averaging 435.0 yards of total offense a game, their second-highest single season average.

The seniors being honored are: Joshua Burnett, Dakota Cowell, Richie Edwards, Luke Gambale, Kyle Henrick, Justin JohnsonKenneth McKenna, Paul Panarelli, Dan Parks, Robert Pruyn, Floyd Shaffer, and Stephen Tomaselli.

A Day of Honoring, Part 2

The Salve Regina football team will line up in camouflaged gear to face the U.S. Coast Guard Academy at noon Saturday on Gaudet Field in Middletown, one of several gestures planned by the university to honor those who have served – past and present – in our nation's military.

The Seahawks will kick off their Nov. 9 "Military Appreciation Day Game" by offering military servicemen and women, along with fans, will be presented gifts by cadets in the university's Army ROTC program.

Veterans will join with Salve Regina alumni for a game ball presentation and coin toss. During halftime festivities, Salve Regina junior Allie Ventura, who recently contracted as an ROTC Cadet, will take her Oath of Contracting.

Taking the Reins

Former offensive coordinator Kevin Gilmartin takes over as the fifth head coach of Salve Regina football. Before coming to the Seahawks, Gilmartin worked five seasons handling the responsibilities of offensive coordinator, recruiting coordinator, quarterbacks coach, running backs coach, and admissions liaison. He helped lead the team to three consecutive postseason appearances, advancing to the ECFC title game in 2009, as well as the ECAC North Atlantic Bowl in both 2010 and 2011.

Prior to Mount Ida, Gilmartin was a special teams/assistant running backs coach at Hofstra (Division I-AA) and a quarterbacks/defensive backs coach at Hamilton (Division III) for five years. Coach Gilmartin also spent two seasons at Nipmuc Regional High School where he became the school's all-time winningest head coach.

Seahawk Football History

Salve Regina added football in the fall of 1993 and is entering its 21st season on the gridiron. The Seahawks have had 11 winning seasons since its inception and boasts a 112-85 all time record over the last 20 seasons.

The Seahawks have made a trip to the post season four times; most recently winning the ECAC North-West Bowl 26-6 over Worcester St. 

October Baby

Salve Regina has played some of its best football in the month of October. The Seahawks boast a 57-34 all-time record in October and have won nine of their last 10 contests in the 10th month.

Home Sweet Home

The Seahawks have enjoyed two different home fields over their 21 years of football at Salve Regina and have always faired quite well in front of their home crowd. Over the years, the Seahawks are 61-35 (.635) at home and currently have a 13-game winning streak on their home field.

Traynor for 1,000

With 688 receiving yards this season, Traynor has eclipsed the 1,000-yard mark for his career as a Seahawk with 1,503. Traynor ranks third all time in Salve Regina's record books. The junior is 777 yards away from second and 1,013 away from the top spot in program history. Traynor is also six TDs shy of tying the school record for his career. With his two touchdown catches last Saturday, Traynor tied the program record for receiving scores in a season with eight so far this year.  

Chasing 1,000 (Twice)

Junior running back Dan Buonocore (Mahwah, N.J.) has become the definition of a double threat for the Seahawks. The junior is just 19 yards shy of 1,000 rushing yards for his career and 313 yards shy of 1,000 receiving. Buonocore has the potential to be the first player to reach the 1,000 yard mark in both rushing and receiving at Salve Regina.  

Must Be Something He Said

Salve Regina has scored 141 of its 258 points this season in the first and third quarter and are out-scoring its opponents 141-76 after coming out of the locker room to open the game and after halftime. Salve Regina has allowed just two touchdowns in the third quarter this season.  

Last week against Maine Maritime, six of Salve Regina's 10 drives ended in a touchdown for the Seahawks, including the drive to open the first and third quarter. 

Taking it All the Way

Junior Phil Terio (Trumbull, Conn.) displayed his speed on homecoming as he took MIT's first punt of the game 61 yards into the end zone to give Salve Regina a quick 6-0 lead without an offensive series in the game. It was his second punt return TD of his career.

Terio set a new personal record with 92  punt return yards last week against Maine Maritime, including tying his personal-long of 61 yards. 

Among the Elite

Sophomore Hayden Stanton (Wallingford, Conn.) leads the NEFC with 7.5 sacks on the year. Stanton is ranked 27th nationally as well in sacks. Senior Joshua Burnett (Whitham, Mass.)  and juniors Phil Terio (Trumbull, Conn.) and Matt Conroy (Philadelphia, Pa.) are third in the league with two fumble recoveries while ranking 72nd in the country with two fumble recoveries on the season. 

Junior Steven Wilken (Ringwood, N.J.) leads the conference with 18 passing touchdowns and is 25th in the country while leading the NEFC with 132 points this season, ranking him 34th in DIII. Wilken is one touchdown pass shy of tying his own single-season record at Salve Regina. 

Stone Wall Defense

The Seahawks boast one of the strongest defenses in the conference and DIII right now. Salve Regina has the third-best red zone defense in the country, allowing just seven scores on 14 chances this season. 

Speaking of Defense 

Not only are the Seahawks defenders troublesome for the quarterbacks and receivers, but Salve Regina has a way with stopping its opponents from gaining first downs. The Seahawks are ranked ninth in the country allowing teams to earn 108 first downs on them this season. Salve Regina allowed five Montclair State first downs and just six against Nichols.   

I'll Take That

Salve Regina had an interception by junior Garfield Douglas (Attleboro, Mass.) and two fumble recoveries last week against Maine Maritime. The second fumble recovery came as the Mariners were threatening to score late in the third quarter. After a bad hand off, senior Joshua Burnett (Whitman, Mass.) forced a fumble that junior Phil Terio (Trumbull, Conn.) recovered on the goal line to stop MMA from scoring. 

Terio is a proven threat to most quarterbacks in the league. Last season, Terio led the team picking seven passes out of the air and set an NCAA Division III record by returning four of them for a score. Graduated senior Maxwell Shubert was close behind Terio with six INTs and finished his career as a Seahawk with 14, second all-time at Salve Regina.  

Terio picked up right where he left off in Salve Regina's 36-7 victory over Bridgewater St. to open the season. The cornerback picked off an early second quarter pass for his 10th of his career. Terio put the game away for Salve Regina two weeks ago as he picked off MIT's quarter back for his 11th INT of his career late in the fourth quarter to end the Engineers final drive of the game. 

Juniors Matt Conroy (Philadelphia, Pa.) and Frank Musco (Montvale, N.J.) each had a pick against MIT. Conroy ended MIT's opening dive of the second half and Musco kept six points off the board as he picked off MIT in the end zone in the third quarter. Musco picked off his second pass of the season against Nichols last week.  

Burnett picked up his second INT of his career late in the second quarter that set up a touchdown drive for the Seahawks. 

Welcome Back, Richie

Senior Richie Edwards (Trumbull, Conn.) is leading the rush game with 635 yards on 110 carries so far. Edwards has found the end zone three times on the ground and caught a 10-yard pass from junior Steven Wilken (Ringwood, N.J.) in Salve Regina's 32-0 win over Nichols.  

Since his return to the field for Salve Regina, Edwards has led the Seahawks in rushing every game he has played and has had at least 100-yards rushing. The senior is 239 yards shy of 2,000 for his career. 

Red Zone Offense

Salve Regina made it a habit of marching down the field to get into the red zone last season. Not only did they get inside the 20, but the Seahawks found the end zone once they were there. Salve Regina converted 35 of 44 chances with 29 touchdowns in 2012.  

The Seahawks picked up right where they left off a season ago and found their way into the end zone all five times they worked their way into the red zone against Bridgewater State. Against Montclair State, the Seahawks found themselves in the end zone four times and three of those times they scored. Salve Regina scored converted three of its five chances in the red zone against MIT. This season the Seahawks are 31-of-42 in the red zone. 

Last week against Maine Maritime, the Seahawks scored all six of their touchdowns once they got into the red zone. 

Not Getting Through

Not only have the Seahawks scored once they have gotten to the red zone, but they have stopped their opponents from doing the same. Salve Regina's defense is ranked third in the nation (7-of-14) in red zone defense. 

Safety Dance

One score you don't see all the time on the scoreboard at a football game is two points but the Seahawks did what four professional teams in the opening week and converted a safety in their season-opener. Salve Regina's safety came off a blocked punt by junior Alex Hennessey (West Babylon, N.Y.) midway through the third quarter. Hennessy recovered the football outside of the end zone to put up two points for Salve Regina.  

The Seahawks added its second two-point score of the year two weeks ago against Nichols on a penalty resulting in the ball being marked in Nichols' end zone. 

Against Curry, Salve Regina took a 36-10 lead with a two-point score as junior Rory McEntee (Wakefield, R.I.) sacked the Colonels quarterback in the end zone for the Seahawks third safety of the year. 

The Seahawks have converted a blocked punt of a safety before, last time was against Endicott on Oct. 10, 2003. Salve Regina lost 27-20 in overtime. 

The Boy Who Blocked the Punt

Junior Alex Hennessy (West Babylon, N.Y.) blocked three punts against Montclair State to tie an NCAA DIII record for blocked punts in a single game. Hennessy has blocked four punts this year and five in his career.  

Sophomore Alex Hulme (Hopkinton, Mass.) blocked two punts against Curry, both in the first quarter. Hulme's second blocked punt of the quarter was recovered by junior Brad Kelly (Portsmouth, R.I.) for a 26-yard punt returned touchdown.  

Speaking of Blocked Kicks

Sophomore Hayden Stanton (Wallingford, Conn.) has two blocked kicks to his credit so far this season. Against MIT, Stanton blocked a field goal in the third quarter and blocked an extra point attempt in the first quarter against Western New England to keep the score knotted at 6-6. Along with Stanton, Hennessy and senior Joshua Burnett (Whitman, Mass.) have all blocked a kick for Salve Regina this season as the Seahawks have nine on the year, leading DIII football.  

Oh Captain, My Captain

Leading the Seahawks on and off the field this season will be a trio of senior captains, Joshua Burnett (Whitman, Mass.) and Richie Edwards (Trumbull, Conn.) and Floyd Shaffer (Conshohocken, Pa.). 

I'm Honored

Sophomore Hayden Stanton (Wallingford, Conn.), junior Steven Wilken (Ringwood, N.J.) and senior Joshua Burnett (Whitman, Mass.) have been named NEFC Players of the Week this season. 

Senior center Floyd Shaffer (Conshohocken, Pa.) and Junior Phil Terio (Trumbull, Conn.) have brought a lot of national attention to the Seahawks prior to the 2013 season as pair have combined for 12 preseason All-America selections with Terio earning a pair of spots on three different lists. Terio also was featured by Josh Buchanan as one of the top-10 Division III players heading into the season.  

Where They Rank

Several juniors have made quite the impact on Salve Regina's record book already and look to re-write the records as they continue their career in the Blue & Green. 

Steven Wilken - Quarterback

Pass Attempts - 4th (557) - needs 42 to overtake 3rd
Pass Completions - 3rd (304) - needs 114 to overtake 2nd
Passing Yards - 3rd (4,072) - needs 945 to overtake 2nd
Passing TDs - 2nd (38) - needs 3 to over take 1st

Matthew Traynor - Wide Receiver

Reception Yards - 3rd (1,503) - needs 778 to overtake 2nd
Receptions - 6th (78) - needs 18 to overtake 5th
Receiving Touchdowns - 3rd (15) - needs 2 to overtake 2nd

Benjamin Barrett - Punter

Punt Yards - 1st (5,010)
Punt Attempts - 1st (131)

Phil Terio - Cornerback/Return Specialist

Punt Return Yards - 4th (325) - needs 70 to over take 3rd
Punt Returns - 5th  (30) - needs 2 to over take 4th
Punt Return TDs - 5th  (2) - needs 1 to over take 2nd, 4 to over take 1st=
Kick Return Yards - 3rd (774) - needs 339 to over take 2nd
Kick Returns - 4th (29) - needs 3 to over take 3rd
Interceptions - T-3rd (11) - needs 4 to overtake 2nd

A Whole New World

2013 will bring a new look to the New England Football Conference with the Massachusetts state schools leaving the conference to form its own, the former Boyd Division with the addition of Maine Maritime and Coast Guard and the loss of Plymouth St. and UMass. Dartmouth comprise the new-look New England Football Conference. The NEFC retains its automatic bid to the NCAA tournament without the need for a championship game at the end of the season. 

Familiar Faces

After successful playing careers with the Seahawks, Gregory Gosselin and Daniel Kehew turn in their pads for whistles to help lead the Seahawks this season. New to Salve Regina, Nick Lynch is reunited with Gilmartin, his former coach at Mount Ida, to help guide Salve Regina. 

Also joining the staff in the off season was Casey Goff, coming to Salve Regina after a successful three-year career with King's (Pa.). Goff had a connection to the Seahawks prior to arriving to Newport, R.I. as he coached with linebackers/special team coordinator Michael Weick. 

A Win for Salve Regina Would ...

- Lift the Seahawks to 113-85
- Give the Seahawks their sixth-straight win over a DIII school
- Push the Seahawk NEFC winning streak to six games