Marist Falls to Bucknell In Season Opener

Poughkeepsie, New York – Marist fell to the Bucknell Bison in their season opener Saturday night, 26-10. There was a lot of excitement going into the opener this weekend as the fans packed the stadium to watch their Red Foxes build off of the success of last season. This game was played in front of a large crowd as 3,363 fans packed the stadium, which is the sixth largest crowd at Tenney Stadium since the Stadium was built 10-years ago.

The game started out well for Marist, as the opening drive would take the Red Foxes all the way down field as quarterback Mike White (Jr.) would connect with wide receiver Juston Christian (So.) for 33-yards. A five yard rush by White would get Marist in the red zone, but like most of the night, the drive would stall there as kicker Mike Maccarone (Sr.) hit a 37-yard field goal to give Marist a 3-0 lead early in the game.

Marist was plagued by turnovers, as they committed six (four interceptions and two lost fumbles) to Bucknell’s one (interception). Two of Marist turnover’s occurred inside of the red zone, severely hampering their scoring opportunities. The interception for the Bison came in the second quarter as Marist corner Drew Daniel would jump the route and intercept QB R.J. Netti and return it 60-yards on the final play of the first half.

Bucknell got on the board when running back Joey DeFloria rushed for a 32-yard touchdown late in the first quarter to put the Bison ahead, 7-3. Later on in the first half, the Bison would extend their lead with a pair of touchdowns by wide receiver Jack Horan and running back Joey DeFloria. R.J. Netti would throw a 71-yard touchdown to Horan and Defloria would get his second rushing touchdown of the night with 4-yard rush up the middle. This would extend the Bison lead to 17 as the score was 20-3.

Marist opened strong in the second half, as they were able to finally have an answer to Bucknell’s running game. Defloria would rush for 150 yards in 27 attempts wth two scores on the night. The team made adjustments not only on defense, but on offense too. Marist added another score in the third quarter as White would make several completions to his wide receiver’s that included a 15 yard first down run. That then added a five yard rushing touchdown for the junior quarterback to put a dent in the Bison’s lead, 23-10. Marist would keep the Bison out of the end zone in the second half of the game.

The only scores Bucknell kicker Alex Pechin hit two field goals to close out the scoring for his team. Marist would have an opportunity in the third quarter to make a dent in the deficit after White connected with wide receiver Lawrence Dickens three times to get the Red Foxes on the Bucknell 23 yard line. On the next play, White would connect with Dickens again for his fourth straight completion of the drive, only for it to be stripped out by the Bison’s defender Bryan Marine on the Bucknell three yard line. The play brought the air right out of the stadium as Marist had an opportunity at making it a one score game and Coach Parady agreed after the game at the press conference.

“I liked the fight in our guys, especially in the second half, we had a chance to get the ball in the end zone, where we turned it over on the one to make it a one score game with eleven minutes to go in the fourth quarter. I did like our fight, but a lot of the things that happened tonight were self inflicted and we just need to be better than that,” said Parady.

The offensive leaders of the night were Mike White and running back Marcellus Calhoun (Sr.). White completed 20 passes in 36 attempts, finishing with 251 passing yards and scored the only touchdown for Marist. Calhoun led the team in rushing with 60 yards on 17 attempts, averaging 3.5 yards a carry. The defensive leaders were safeties Wes Beans and Mike Marston who both had 7 tackles. Defensive lineman Peter Delatour (So.) and Eddie Zinn-Turner (So.) each recorded a sack.

Up Next for Marist: Georgetown Saturday, Sept. 10th 6PM kickoff at Tenney Stadium.