AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University football team came up just short in their quest for a Sun Division championship on Saturday night, falling 34-27 to the nationally ranked Keiser University Seahawks at Gyrene Field. Ave Maria outgained the Seahawks, had more time of possession and converted more first downs, but Keiser took advantage of two huge turnovers to claim a share of the Sun Division title with Southeastern, who defeated Florida Memorial on Saturday.
The Gyrenes had a perfect start to the season finale, marching 72 yards on the first nine plays of the game. Ave Maria took advantage of two 15-yard penalties on the Seahawks, then cashed in when Will Tate found Brock Summers for a 15-yard touchdown, giving AMU an early 7-0 lead.
After Keiser answered on a four yard touchdown run from quarterback Johnathan Mosely, the Seahawks took advantage of AMU's first turnover of the day. Wesley Scott intercepted a pass and returned it to the Ave Maria eight, with Marques Burgess scoring from three yards out just two plays later. Keiser's two touchdowns in two minutes gave the Seahawks a 13-7 lead.
Ave Maria scored twice in the second quarter, taking the lead back on both occasions. On AMU's first drive of the second quarter, another lengthy sequence (10 plays, 78 yards) ended when Tate found Daniel Burke on first and goal for a nine yard touchdown. After Keiser retook the lead on a Caleb Walls touchdown reception, Ave Maria reclaimed the advantage with yet another long drive (12 plays, 75 yards), culminating in a Joshua Jenkins 10 yard touchdown catch to give AMU a 21-20 lead at halftime.
Keiser got a big turnover on Ave Maria's first drive of the third quarter, as the Gyrenes fumbled inside the Keiser 20 after a completed pass. The AMU defense kept Keiser out of the endzone, and Jenkins found paydirt again with a 12-yard touchdown catch with 1:12 to go in the third quarter, increasing the Ave Maria lead to 27-20.
However, the Seahawks controlled the fourth quarter. Mosely found Jerson Jacquez for a seven-yard touchdown to tie the game with 11:41 to play, then scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown on a Burgess run with 5:05 on the clock. Ave Maria's final possession saw the Gyrenes go three-and-out, and Keiser was able to run out the final three and a half minutes to secure the win.
Offensively, Will Tate threw four touchdown passes in his final game as a Gyrene, logging 171 passing yards and 57 more on the ground. Brian Stiemke, who started the season as a linebacker, eclipsed the 100 yard mark on the ground with 103 yards on 16 carries. Jenkins capped his remarkable senior season with four catches for 84 yards, including two touchdowns. Defensively, Shane O'Brien was involved in 18 tackles from the safety position to lead the Ave Maria defensive effort.
Ave Maria's 2021 season ends with a 4-2 record in Sun Division play, which included victories over Southeastern, Webber, Warner, and Florida Memorial. The Gyrenes enter the offseason with high hopes entering the 2022 season, as many of the team's biggest standouts from 2021 are set to return.
