DUDLEY, Mass. – It was a night to remember as the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth football team posted a 57-6 victory in the 2023 season opener at Nichols College on Friday night. The win, saw Josh Sylvester garner his first "W" as the Corsairs head coach, while senior quarterback Dante Aviles-Santos became the program record holder in two categories.
Aviles-Santos, whose outstanding 2022 saw him break a number of season records, became the Corsairs all-time leader in passing yards and passing touchdowns in the victory at Nichols. Needing just 96 yards, he eclipsed Stephen Gacioch's mark of 5,477 yards in the second quarter, hitting junior wide receiver Antonio Brown for a 50-yard completion.
The four touchdown passes in the contest saw Aviles-Santos take down the passing TD record, held since 2016 by Cory Burnham. In his four-year career, Burnham had 56 touchdowns, which Aviles-Santos eclipsed by one for a new record of 57.
UMass Dartmouth's defense got to work early in the contest as the homestanding Bison won the coin toss and elected to receive. Nichols powered their way down the field, converting on fourth down and capitalizing deep in the Corsairs zone on a pair of penalties. The Bison saw Zahir Booker power in for the touchdown, but the play was called back on an offensive hold. Following the penalty, the home team was unable to recover, turning the ball over on downs with 7:59 remaining.
The Corsairs used that momentum on their opening drive, as running back Luis Gonzalez posted back-to-back runs of 13 and 17-yards to bring the visitors closer to midfield. On their own 46, Aviles-Santos launched the ball downfield, landing in the hands of wide receiver Angel Sanchez in the endzone for the Corsairs first score. Junior kicker Braedyn DeMarco sent the point after through for the 7-0 lead.
After a 3-and-out on the Bison's next drive, the Corsairs rolled once more as Aviles-Santos broke the passing record with a deep right 50-yard strike to Brown at the Nichols' five-yard line. An ensuing penalty on UMass Dartmouth negated a run by junior wide out Marvens Jean, and the visiting team saw DeMarco come on – his field goal attempt going wide right from 23-yards out.
The Aviles-Santos to Sanchez connection shined once again in the second quarter as the senior QB hit Sanchez from 10-yards out on a 3rd and 9 and DeMarco secured the P-A-T for the 14-0 lead. The Corsairs defense turned the tables on the next drive as senior defensive back Trell Best intercepted the ball, returning it 73-yards for the touchdown. UMass Dartmouth added on a two-point conversion as Corey Kilroy hit tight end Jalen Kopecky to make it a 22-0 contest.
The Corsairs offense answered on their next drive as Aviles-Santos put it into the hands of junior receiver Thomas Zednick for a 13-yard score. UMass Dartmouth continued to press late in the frame after a 44-yard pass from Aviles-Santos to sophomore wide out Eli Matthews, set the visitors up on the Bison's five-yard line. Gonzalez pushed the margin to 36-0 seconds later, carrying the ball up the middle for a 5-yard gain and the score.
Third quarter action saw the Corsairs add to their margin, as a short six-yard pass through the middle to Kopecky from Aviles-Santos made it a 43-0 lead. The UMass D defense continued to be solid, forcing a turnover on downs as senior Logan Chappell blocked a punt.
Rookie running back Malachi Johnson shined on the Corsairs next offensive drive, racking up 27 yards, including a one-yard score down the middle for the 50-0 margin with 21 seconds to play in the frame.
The Bison got onto the board in the fourth quarter as quarterback Xavier Powell completed a 15-yard bullet to Joshua Vitti to cut the deficit for the home team to 50-6. The Corsairs added their final score of the contest soon after as rookie quarterback JC Petrongolo found rookie Mekhi Wilson for his first collegiate score with 2:46 remaining.
UMass Dartmouth posted 570 total offensive yards in the contest, including 272 rushing and 297 passing. Aviles-Santos went 17-of-27 in the contest for 282 yards. He had four touchdowns, including a long of 54-yards. Petrongolo came on in the fourth, going 1-for-2 with 15 yards and a long of 15. Gonzalez posted 117 yards on 11 carries, including a long of 39 with one touchdown, while Sanchez caught four passes for a game-high 78 yards on the night. Additionally, the Corsairs' offensive line did not allow a sack to the Bison on the evening.
Defensively, the Corsairs were paced by junior linebacker Sam Alicea, who recorded a game-best eight tackles, four unassisted, along with a sack. Sophomore lineman Karis Codio and rookie Jason Nickerson each recorded a sack as well, while senior Jackson Wellman added seven tackles. Junior Jonathan Brightman had five tackles (four solo) with a pass breakup. On Special Teams, DeMarco went 7-for-7 in point-after attempts, missing his only field goal try of the night.
Nichols saw two players in the pocket throughout the night, paced by Powell, who had 87 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed for 74 yards on the evening. Vitti led the Bison in receiving with three catches for 29 yards. Defensively, Garrhet Manning had eight tackles with three solo, while three others notched six tackles, including a game-high five solo from Jonathan Ferrara.
UMass Dartmouth returns to action next Saturday in its 2023 home opener on Cressy Field. The Corsairs welcome Curry College at 5pm in the Gold Rush Game, which will feature contests, prizes and more!
Corsairs Victorious Over Nichols, 57-6 in Season Opener
/seasons/2023/boxscores/20230901_fjt3.xml
2023
Mass-Dartmouth
57
Nichols
6
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mass-Dartmouth (1-0) | 7 | 29 | 14 | 7 | 57 |
| Nichols (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 |
Sep 01, 2023