THROGGS NECK, N.Y. – The Spartan defense forced five turnovers and freshman Moe Harris rushed for a school-record five touchdowns as Castleton overcame an early deficit to earn a 49-34 victory over SUNY Maritime on Saturday afternoon at Reinhart Field. 

Castleton trailed 21-7 early in the second quarter but outscored the Privateers 42-13 the rest of the way to secure the comeback win. The visitors did give up 555 yards of offense, but picked off two passes and recovered three fumbles as they improved to 5-2 and 3-1 in the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference. The Spartan offense passed for 262 yards and rushed for 163 yards and six touchdowns on Maritime as they dropped to 3-4 and 1-3 in conference play. 

Leading the attack, Moe Harris rushed for a school-record five touchdowns and recorded his third consecutive 100-yard rushing game, with 157 yards on 34 carries. George Busharis was an efficient 14-for-20 for 262 yards with a single score while also rushing for one touchdown. 

Junior Darren Callan was all over the field on defense, recording a game-high 14 tackles with 1.5 going for a loss. He also forced two fumbles, recovered anoter, and blocked a field goal. Classmate Tyler Higley, meanwhile, recorded his third consecutive two-interception game to go with four tackles, three pass breakups and a blocked extra point. 

Quarterback Zach Chillcot directed the Maritime offense well, going 17-for-36 for 266 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. He also rushed the ball 22 times for 116 yards and one score. Brett McKinney rushed for 98 yards and one touchdown while Nick Fischetti caught five passes for 114 yards and a score. 

The Privateers took the opening kickoff and methodically moved down the field in 6:10 before Chilcott ran it in on second down from the one-yard line on the 11th play of the drive. 

Castleton responded in its first drive after starting at its own 37-yard line. On third down, Busharis found Soren Pelz-Walsh for a 38-yard reception to bring the ball down to the Maritime 20-yard line. Harris then did the rest and four rushes later scored from the one-yard line to tie it 7-7 at 6:18. 

It only took 3:32 for the Privateers to take back the lead as Chilcot connected with McKinney for a 38-yard touchdown pass. Maritime added to its leads at 14:34 of the second quarter on a seven-yard touchdown run by Cardinal Charles. 

Harris pulled the Spartans back within seven, scoring on a 52-yard scamper with 11:09 left in the half. Minutes later the Privateers were poised to extend the lead, but Callan blocked a 42-yard field goal attempt to maintain the seven-point deficit. 

Castleton scored on its next drive as Busharis found Pelz-Walsh for the 13-yard score on the third play of the drive for the 27-21 lead. Maritime responded by scoring a touchdown with just 59 seconds left in the half, but Higley blocked the extra point to keep it tied at the half. 

Harris gave the Spartans back the lead with a one-yard touchdown rush at 12:05 and then three plays later Callan knocked the ball away from Chilcot and Mitch Bouton recovered. Castleton capitalized eventually with another Harris score for the 40-27 lead with 9:17 left. 

Higley intercepted Chilcot in the endzone on Maritime's next possession but the Privateers finally managed to cut into the lead with 11:41 remaining in the contest to make it 40-34. 

Lineberger connected on a 23-yard field goal to extend Castleton's lead to 43-34. Callan then forced another fumble, leading to a George Busharis touchdown run with 7:05 left to make it 49-34. The defense did the rest, giving the Spartans a 15-point victory.

Pelz-Walsh finished with six catches for 124 yards and one score while Makai Hawkins had five receptions for 96 yards and also rushed once for five yards. Defensively, Jay Morgan added six tackles and 1.5 stops for a loss.

The Spartans return to action next Saturday when they travel to face Anna Maria at 3 pm.