United States Merchant Marine Academy

KINGS POINT, N.Y. (Sept. 26, 2026) – The USMMA defense held Norwich to just 17 rushing yards and an 0-for-13 performance on third down as the Mariners rolled to a 44-9 Homecoming victory on Saturday afternoon at Brooks Stadium. Playing in front of a crowd of 1,300, USMMA improved to 3-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play, while Norwich fell to 1-2 (0-1). A nor'easter brought sustained winds of 28 miles per hour out of the north-northeast throughout the afternoon, while rain largely held off until the second half.
 
Game File

• Box Score 

Junior quarterback Bubba Mustain (Oro Valley, Ariz.) led the Mariners' ground attack with 88 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries, finding the end zone from three, four and one yards out. Mustain also completed 4-of-9 passes for 112 yards, with classmate Angelo Cimino (Salinas, Calif.) hauling in three receptions for 104 yards, including a 51-yard connection in the third quarter. Junior Sonny Endicott (Colorado Springs, Colo.) needed just five carries to pile up 71 yards and two touchdowns, while sophomore Harrison Garrido (St. John's, Fla.) added 52 yards on six attempts. Senior Will Surdez (Colts Neck, N.J.) accounted for USMMA's sixth rushing touchdown with a four-yard score in the third quarter.
 
Defensively, sophomore Brendan Cochrane (Rio Rancho, N.M.) led Merchant Marine with seven tackles, while senior Zatyk Holub (Mount Vernon, Iowa) continued his strong start to the season with four tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks for nine yards. Junior Matthew Norberg (Levittown, N.Y.) added 1.5 sacks and classmate Jonathan Wheeler (Golden, Colo.) was credited with another sack as the Mariners brought Norwich quarterback Landon Beecher down five times for a total loss of 25 yards. Junior safety Chase Laux (Oro Valley, Ariz.) recorded an interception at the end of the first half.
 
Junior Cooper Havenar (Palmer Lake, Colo.) also made an impact on special teams, blocking a Norwich punt near the goal line in the first quarter that resulted in a safety. Sophomore Karson Bye (Liberty Hill, Texas) converted all six of his extra-point attempts and recorded six touchbacks on eight kickoffs.
 
The Mariners dominated nearly every major statistical category, outgaining Norwich 433-154 overall and holding a massive 321-17 advantage on the ground. USMMA registered 22 first downs compared to just eight for the Cadets and possessed the football for 35:11. The Mariners were also a perfect 3-for-3 on fourth down and scored touchdowns on all six of their red-zone opportunities. Norwich, meanwhile, failed to convert any of its 13 third-down attempts.
 
Merchant Marine wasted little time taking control, marching 75 yards on six plays on the opening possession before Mustain scored from three yards out to make it 7-0. The defense then pinned Norwich deep in its own territory, and Havenar's blocked punt resulted in a safety that increased the advantage to 9-0 with 5:32 remaining in the opening quarter.
 
The Mariners broke the game open with three touchdowns in the second quarter. Endicott finished an eight-play, 62-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown run before Mustain scored from four yards out less than four minutes later. Kings Point then put together its longest drive of the afternoon, going 95 yards in 12 plays before Endicott's six-yard touchdown with 1:14 remaining sent USMMA into halftime with a 30-0 advantage.
 
USMMA added two more scores in the third quarter. Mustain connected with Cimino for 51 yards to the Norwich one-yard line before finishing the five-play, 63-yard drive himself with his third touchdown of the afternoon. The Mariners followed with a nine-play, 50-yard march that took more than five minutes off the clock and ended with Surdez scoring from four yards out, extending the lead to 44-0 with 3:45 remaining in the third.
 
Norwich broke through in the fourth quarter after a sack in the end zone resulted in a safety. The Cadets then scored their lone touchdown on their ensuing possession when Beecher found A. Guerrero for a four-yard touchdown pass, accounting for the final 44-9 margin.
 
For Norwich, Beecher completed 16-of-30 passes for 133 yards with one touchdown and one interception, but finished with just one net rushing yard while being sacked five times. Will Patenaude led the Cadets' traditional ground game with four yards on nine carries. Defensively, Corey Stone recorded a game-high 11 tackles, including eight solo stops.
 
Up next, the Mariners return to the road on Saturday, Oct. 3, when they travel to Cambridge, Mass., to take on MIT. Kickoff is scheduled for noon.
 
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