Kings Point, N.Y. - October 17, 2015 - The Springfield College football team suffered a 22-21 setback to Merchant Marine on Saturday afternoon in Liberty League play.

The loss drops the Pride to 4-3, including a 2-2 record against league opponents.

Jake Eglintine (Gansevoort, N.Y.) led the Springfield offense with 108 yards on the ground and two touchdowns.  The Pride finished with with 310 yards of total offense, including 269 on the ground.  Max Nacewicz (Sandy Hook, Conn.) led all players with 15 tackles.

Springfield held a 21-14 lead heading into the fourth quarter, only to have Wiley Martin punch in a one-yard touchdown that capped a 12-play, 79 yard drive. The TD was set up by the previous play, a 25-yard pass by senior Matt McDaniels to classmate Dylan Crook that brought the ball down to the Pride's one-yard line.  On what would prove to be the deciding play of the game, junior tight end Robert Baker hauled in a two-point conversion to give USMMA the 22-21 advantage with just 3:14 to play in the fourth.

On the ensuing drive after the TD, Springfield charged up-field quickly to the Merchant Marine 38-yard line on two running plays totaling 32 yards, but the Mariners made four straight stops, including a stuff on a 4th-and-3.

The eight points were USMMA's only of the second half, but it was enough to overcome the 21-14 deficit they faced after Springfield came out hot to start the half. The Pride scored a touchdown on their first drive of the third quarter when sophomore Eglintine ran in a one-yard TD, and then the Pride took its first lead of the day just about a minute and a half later when junior Joe Festo (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) ran back a Mariner punt 72 yards to the end zone after a USMMA three-and-out.

Freshman Charles Deegan recovered an Eglintine fumble on the opening drive of the game, helping the Mariners get on the board first on their first possession. McDaniels hooked up with classmate David Gregory for a 32-yard touchdown pass capping off a seven-play, 44-yard drive, and sophomore Jake McDonough converted the PAT to give the hosts an early 7-0 lead just under five minutes into the game.

Springfield responded on the very next drive, and it took the Pride just four plays to find the end-zone. Eglintine rushed for a 45-yard TD, and then freshman Blake Heller's (North Bellmore, N.Y.) good PAT tied the score up at 7-7 at 8:03 of the first.

Neither team generated much on offense the remainder of the opening quarter, until Merchant Marine's first possession of the second quarter. USMMA charged 84 yards up-field in 10 plays to score, as McDaniels found a hole up the middle, fought off some pressure from the secondary and ran in a 38-yard TD on a second-down play. McDonough's PAT put the Mariners ahead 14-7.

On the ensuing next drive, the Mariners benefited from a crucial fourth-down penalty by Springfield, which was attempting a fourth-down conversion into the red zone, but were instead backed up 15 yards and were forced to punt.

The Mariner offense totaled 230 yards on the day (173 on the ground and 57 in the air). McDaniels led the ground game with 60 yards and a score, while Martin was not far behind with 49 yards and a TD. McDaniels was also 2-for-5 on completions with the one passing TD to Gregory, who had one of two USMMA catches, while the other belonged to Crook.

On defense, junior Josh Woodburn led the team with 10 tackles, while classmate Patrick Keyes made seven stops, including three for combined losses of 21 yards. Whalen had six tackles, including a sack in the first quarter for a loss of three yards.

Springfield will host St. Lawrence next Saturday at 1:30 pm in a Liberty League game as part of the Pride's Homecoming festivities.