ITHACA, NY – Hartwick fell to Ithaca College, the nineteenth ranked team in the country in the latest D3football.com poll, on Saturday at Butterfield Stadium in the Empire 8 Conference opener for both teams. The Bombers led the Hawks by a 14-0 margin at halftime but opened up the game in the second half in a 42-7 win.
The Hawks fall to 1-2 overall. Ithaca is now 2-0.
The Bombers would earn 509 yards of offense on the day. The Ithaca defense limited the Hawks to 312.
'Wick had a difficult time gaining ground in the opening half as they only managed 40 yards on their opening four drives.
The Bombers got on the scoreboard on their second drive following a 9-play, 77-yard scoring drive. Quarterback Tom Dempsey would connect with Ben Cary for a seven-yard score and the hosts were in front 7-0 with 3:03 left in the quarter.
Ithaca would get the ball back with under a minute left in the first and they subsequently added seven more in the second quarter. This time, a 70-yard drive on nine plays was capped by a Dempsey to Cary 23-yard score to double the Bombers' lead, 14-0.
With under three and a half minutes left before halftime, Hartwick quarterback John Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) would hit receiver Tanner Williams (Eagle Bridge, NY/Hoosick Falls) for gains of 19 and 23 yards as the Hawks drove to the IC 36. But, the Hawks got no closer and turned the ball over on downs.
With under a minute before halftime, Garcia connected with Brad Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) and then John Horner (Queens Village, NY / Fox Lane) twice to make it to the Bomber 33 only to have an interception put an end to the scoring threat and the half ended 14-0.
The Bombers broke the game open after two plays from scrimmage after receiving the kickoff. Tristan Brown broke free for a 67-yard touchdown run to extend the Ithaca lead.
Ithaca scored for the fourth time on their next possession and the hosts led 28-0 with just over six minutes left in the third quarter.
The Hawks got the ball back and drove to the IC 23. Needing points, 'Wick went for it on a 4th and 15 but were stopped giving the ball back to the Bombers.
Ithaca would score their fifth touchdown just after the start of the fourth quarter. They added their sixth after gaining possession off a Hawks' turnover.
Sophomore Billy Pine (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Falls HS) entered the game at quarterback for the Hawks on their final drove of the game. He would move his team 83 yards on 10 plays for a touchdown. On the drive, he connected on all five of his passes for a total of 58 yards and he rushed for another 23 on four runs, finishing it off with a one-yard touchdown.
John Garcia ended the game with 228 yards through the air on 21 completions. Horner caught five balls for 77 yards. Williams also made five receptions for 57 yards and Ryan Manning (Watervliet, NY/Watervliet) made four catches for 62 yards.
On the defensive side of the ball, Nate Farley (Amsterdam, NY/Amsterdam), Jared Morrow (Ogdensburg, NY/Ogdensburg Free Academy), and Matthew Ali (Sayville, NY/Sayville) each had seven tackles. Ali also registered a pair of fumble recoveries. Andrew Bashford (East Rockaway, NY/East Rockaway) added six tackles, including two tackles for loss and one sack. A.J. Sakac (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) also had six tackles.
Hartwick has a bye week next Saturday. The Hawks return to action on True Blue Weekend against Alfred. The Hawks and Saxons kickoff on October 4 at Wright Stadium at 1 p.m.
#19 Ithaca Downs Hartwick Football
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20140920_nupf.xml
2014
Hartwick
7
Ithaca
42
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartwick (1-2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| Ithaca (2-0) | 7 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 42 |
Sep 20, 2014