GENEVA, N.Y.—The 25th-ranked Hobart College football team turned in its most complete performance of the season under the lights at Boswell Field, posting a 23-3 non-conference win over Ithaca College on Homecoming and Family Weekend. The Statesmen piled up 324 yards of offense, while limiting the Bombers to 177.
Junior quarterback Shane Sweeney was 18-of-31 passing for 225 yards and two touchdowns. He was intercepted once. For the third straight week, Hobart's offensive line gave Sweeney plenty of time to throw. The Statesmen have not allowed a sack this season. Junior wide receiver Brandon Shed caught a game-high seven passes for a game-high 115 yards and two TDs. It was his fourth consecutive 100-yard receiving game and seventh in Hobart's last nine games. Junior running back Joe Letizia led the ground game with 71 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
The Hobart defense was led by first-year linebacker Jedh Downey's team-high eight tackles. Junior defensive tackle Zackary Robak and senior defensive end James Hedger added seven stops and one sack apiece. Juniors Tom D'Antonio, Brandon Ball, and Almamy Conde each recorded six tackles with Ball notching 1.5 sacks and D'Antonio one sack. In all, the Statesmen logged a season-high six sacks.
Ithaca senior quarterback Wolfgang Shafer was 14-of-36 passing for 122 yards. He was also intercepted once. Myles LaFrance caught a team-high four passes for 26 yards. Junior running back Tristan Brown gained a team-high 34 yards on eight carries.
Junior linebackers Dan Loizos and Kenny Bradley each made eight tackles to pace the Bomber defense.
Ithaca (1-1) used the game's opening drive to go from its own 29 to the Hobart 7 without facing a third down, but the offensive efficiency sputtered out in the red zone and the Bombers had to settle for a 24-yard field goal by first-year DJ Ellis.
Hobart (3-0) wasted little time answering. On the team's first play from scrimmage, Sweeney hit Shed for a 42-yard gain and a first down at the Ithaca 28. Six plays later, Sweeney connected with Shed again, this time on a 15-yard touchdown pass for a 6-3 lead. Senior Sean Kirshe tacked on the extra point to make it 7-3 with just under eight minutes remaining in the first quarter.
D'Antonio's sack put Ithaca in a second-and-17 hole and the defense forced a third down incompletion to give the ball back to the Hobart offense. Sophomore Pat Minogue's punt pinned the Statesmen back at their own 10, but nine plays and 90 yards later, Sweeney threw a 16-yard touchdown pass to Shed for a 13-3 lead. Kirshe's extra point hit the right upright, leaving the Statesmen a 10-point lead with a minute to go in the opening quarter.
Ithaca went three-and-out thanks to Ball's sack of Shafer on third-and-7, setting up another Hobart scoring drive. This time, the Statesmen had to settle for a 36-yard field goal by Kirshe for a 16-3 advantage early in the second quarter.
The Bombers moved into the red zone once more on their final possession of the half, but senior cornerback Todd Collier intercepted Shafer at the Hobart 3 with less than 30 seconds remaining and the Statesmen carried a 13-point edge into the break.
While the teams were in the locker room at the half, the skies opened up and the second half was played in a drenching rain. Neither offense looked comfortable in the deluge, although Ithaca let two promising opportunities go unfulfilled. The Bombers failed to convert a fourth-and-2 at the Hobart 19 turning the ball over on downs on their first possession of the third quarter and then junior cornerback Jordan Schemm intercepted Sweeney late in the frame, but the offense went three-and-out.
Hobart capped the scoring early in the fourth quarter with a six-play, 57-yard drive. Sweeney converted a third-and-4 with a 33-yard completion to junior tight end Zach Withers and then turned the drive over to Letizia, who needed three plays to cover the final 18 yards to the end zone.
The Statesmen defense bottled up the Bombers in the fourth quarter, limiting the visitors to just 12 yards in the final 15 minutes.
Hobart posted its fourth straight win over Ithaca when playing on Boswell Field. The 20-point victory was the Statesmen's largest margin of victory in its series with the Bombers.
Hobart will be at home again next Saturday, Sept. 24, when the Statesmen open Liberty League play against Union (1-2). Kickoff at Boswell Field is scheduled for noon.
#25 Statesmen defuse Bombers 23-3
/seasons/2016/boxscores/20160917_r8af.xml
2016
Ithaca
3
Hobart
23
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ithaca (1-1) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| No. 19 Hobart (3-0) | 13 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 23 |
Sep 17, 2016