Nationally-ranked St. John Fisher College improved to 2-0 on the year, as the Cardinals came away with a 35-21 win at Springfield College on Saturday in an NCAA Division III non-conference matchup.
This marks the 12th time in the last 15 years that Fisher, ranked No. 24 in the latest D3football.com national poll, has won its first two games. The Cardinals will open up Empire 8 Conference play next Saturday at SUNY Cortland in a matchup between last year's co-champions.
Junior receiver Mike Collichio led Fisher on the day with seven receptions for a career-high 170 yards and two touchdowns. Quarterback Matt Naton threw for 292 yards and three touchdowns, while also scoring a touchdown on the ground.
David Carroll led the Fisher defense with 14 tackles, as the Cardinals held Springfield to just 279 yards of total offense. Christopher Biryla and Alec Mortillaro each intercepted passes for the second-straight game.
Fisher never trailed in the game. After forcing the Pride to go three-and-out on the game's opening possession, Fisher went 30 yards on seven plays with fifth-year senior tight end Shane Rossscoring his first career touchdown on a three-yard pass. Collichio provided Fisher with the short field, thanks to a 34-yard punt return.
Springfield answered with a 14-play, 77-yard drive to tie the game at sevens, but Fisher answered right back, scoring just 41 seconds later on a 4-play, 70-yard drive, capped by a one-yard run fromTony Fusco. Fusco broke off a 22-yard run to take the ball to Springfield 1, while Collichio started the drive with a 47-yard reception.
Fisher would push its lead to 21-7 with 5:50 left in the half with Naton scoring on a seven-yard run to put the Cardinals up 14 at the half.
After a scoreless third quarter, things got interesting in the fourth.
Collichio scored on the very first play of the final frame, reaching the endzone on a 48-yard pass to put the Cardinals up 28-7.
Springfield would make it 28-14 with just over 10 minutes to go and made it a one-score game at 28-21 with 7:24 left, as the Pride recovered a fumbled punt attempt at the Fisher 3.
The Pride forced Fisher to go three-and-out on its next possession and got the ball back with just over five minutes left, but Mortillaro, Fisher's senior All-American, intercepted a pass at his own 36 and returned it 10 yards. On the very next offensive play, Collichio delivered the knock-out blow, snagging a career-long 54-yard bomb for the game's final score with just over four minutes left.
Biryla intercepted another pass late in the game, as the Pride were 3-of-16 for 40 yards and two interceptions on the day.
Fusco rushed for 63 yards on 17 carries, while James Chambers racked up 154 all-purpose yards (42 rush, 42 receiving, 71 kick-return).
Derek Boland snagged a career-high four passes for 20 yards, while William Coon made a career-long 35-yard reception on a third-and-27 play.
Devin Dzikowicz was a perfect 5-for-5 on extra points, while Brandon Belles averaged 36.3 yards on three punts.
Biryla finished with nine tackles, while Evan Majewski and Aaron Jones each were credited with eight stops. Anthony Lee, DJ Logory and Cole Ansley-Purpura each made seven tackles.
William Riechert recorded Fisher's lone sack of the day.
Fisher Powers Past Springfield
/seasons/2016/boxscores/20160910_75sk.xml
2016
St. John Fisher
35
Springfield
21
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 22 St. John Fisher (2-0) | 14 | 7 | 0 | 14 | 35 |
| Springfield (0-2) | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 21 |
Sep 10, 2016