Football | 9/20/2020 2:58:00 AM

Box Score AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University football team welcomed its home fans back to Gyrene Field in dominant fashion on Saturday night, rolling past the Florida Memorial University Lions 42-6 in the first ever meeting between the teams. The Gyrenes scored twice in the first five minutes of the contest, and never looked back en route to their first win of 2020.

The game was initially delayed due to inclement weather in the area, but AMU wasted no time in getting on the board. On the opening kickoff, Nick Torres took the ball 95 yards to the endzone, giving AMU an early 7-0 lead. 

Head coach Joe Patterson said he thought his team was able to channel their emotions from a delayed start into a fast one.

"I thought the team handled the hour-long delay well," Patterson said, "and the team came out with great energy to start."

Less than four minutes later, the Gyrenes took advantage of a botched snap, and Quino Mauricette strolled in from nine yards out to open up a 14-0 lead. Ave Maria scored twice more in the first half, as Mauricette, who ran for over 100 yards in the victory, and Charles Philias each scored touchdowns in the second quarter to give AMU a 28-6 halftime lead.

Mauricette gave credit to his offensive line for his 100-yard day, and spotlighted their ability to continue to improve. 

"Those guys are great," Mauricette said. "They have a lot of potential, and we have a bright future ahead of us with them."

Ave Maria never again allowed Florida Memorial to score, and added two touchdowns of their own in the second half for good measure. The Gyrenes scored in the third quarter on the first passing touchdown of the season from 2018 Sun Division Player of the Year Will Tate, who found Christian Jourdain from 28 yards out. Tate's second touchdown pass of the night completed the scoring, as Philias scored on a pass from nine yards out to account for his second score of the night.

With the Gyrenes now sitting at 1-1, attention shifts to a home matchup with the Warner University Royals next weekend. Patterson stated he has no doubts his team will be ready to go against the Royals in the conference opener.

"I never question the commitment of these guys, they are going to work hard and they are going to grind every day," Patterson said. "It's our job as coaches to make sure we game plan well ... and make sure the players are in the best position possible."

Kickoff between the Ave Maria Gyrenes and the Warner Royals is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Gyrene Field next Saturday.