AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University football team made it a Senior Night to remember Saturday night, as the Gyrenes throttled the Warner University Royals, 48-6, at Gyrene Field. It marked the second consecutive 48-point outing for the Gyrenes against the Royals, and was AMU's third straight win in the series. The win gave the Gyrenes a 6-3 record to conclude the 2022 season, the program's second-best mark ever.

Ave Maria head coach Joe Patterson said the game served as a perfect sendoff for AMU's senior class.

The game was a beautiful testimony to what the seniors have helped to build," Patterson said. "We were hitting on all cylinders in all three phases of the game."

After the two teams traded punts to start the game, the Gyrenes quickly took control with scores on their next three drives. Ave Maria's first drive capped an 11-play, 84 yard march down the field, and ended with Quino Mauricette's first touchdown of the day from four yards out. 

Ave Maria's second score came much quicker. After a Warner three-and-out, Andrew Lege found Roman Newkirk for a 50-yard strike, extending the Gyrene lead to 14-0 in the first quarter. The Gyrenes made it 21-0 just 20 seconds into the second quarter, thanks to Mauricette's second four-yard touchdown of the evening. Mauricette's second run was set up by a 22-yard run on a fake punt from Roman Newkirk. 

Another long touchdown gave Ave Maria a 28-0 lead heading into the halftime break. Midway through the second, Lege tossed his second touchdown of the night, a 36-yarder to senior Roc Irlbeck. 

The Gyrenes added two more offensive touchdowns in the second half, preceding Warner's lone score. The first of those scores was the longest of the day, as Lege's third touchdown pass went for 62 yards to Darius Sawyer. The final offensive touchdown of the season was provided by Bryan Stiemke, who scored from three yards out early in the fourth quarter. 

The season was given an emphatic end, as Warner drove deep into Ave Maria territory in the closing moments of the game. On the final play of the season, Kaden Angulo intercepted a Warner pass and returned it 100 yards for a score. 

Ave Maria racked up 541 yards of total offense in the win, thanks to a balanced effort. Lege completed 19 of his 24 passes for 316 yards and three touchdowns, eclipsing the 300-yard mark for the third week in a row. Roman Newkirk also tied a school record with ten receptions, which went for 117 yards. Quino Mauricette continued to etch his name in the Ave Maria record books, running for a single-game record 155 yards, which also allowed the senior to break his own school record for yards in a season.

"Quino has had a tremendous career," Patterson remarked, "and he's playing his best ball right now."

The Gyrenes will likely have several players honored as All-Conference when those accolades are released next week. The 6-3 record, especially with many underclassmen as part of the nucleus, is cause for great optimism within AMU Football.