ONEONTA, NY – Host St. John Fisher College, ranked No. 15 in the latest d3football.com national poll, outscored Hartwick 28-0 in the first half and won by a final count of 42-13 Saturday in Empire 8 Conference football at Growney Stadium. Hartwick falls to 2-3 overall and 1-2 in the league.
The Cardinals registered 434 yards of total offense in the game. Their defense held the Hawks to 283, including just 22 on the ground.
Hartwick won the toss and elected to receive but fell a yard short on their opening series. Following a punt, Fisher marched 61 yards on nine plays for a touchdown to grab the early lead.
The Cardinals added to their advantage on the first play of the second quarter as Tyler Fenti connected with Mike Collichio for 47 yards and the team's second score. The play capped off an 80-yard drive for SJFC.
Later, the hosts drove 63 yards on nine plays with Chris Smith running it in from two yards out to increase the margin to 21-0.
The Cardinals got the ball back with under three minutes left in the half. They would drive 88 yards on eight plays in 1:58 to score their fourth touchdown. Fenti would find James Chambers for a 32-yard touchdown reception.
Hartwick kicked off to start the second half and after 13 plays, Fisher scored again. This time, a Fusco 1-yard touchdown run made the score 35-0.
The Hawks had their most successful drive two possessions later. Two passing plays of 13 and 37 yards from John Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) to Tanner Williams (Eagle Bridge, NY/Hoosick Falls) highlighted the drive as 'Wick moved from its own 19 to the Fisher 25. But losses on the next two plays and two incomplete passes followed and Fisher took over on downs with 18 seconds left in the third quarter.
Six plays later, Steven Strumolo finished the scoring drive off with a four-yard run and Fisher was in front 42-0 with 12:40 left in regulation.
Hartwick got on the scoreboard on its next possession with an 11-play, 75-yard drive. Quarterback Billy Pine (Hoosick Falls, NY/Hoosick Fall) ran for 14 yards and threw for six more on the drive. Garcia added 31 yards through the air, including a four-yard touchdown reception to Williams for six points. The PAT would be blocked and the Hawks trailed 42-6 with 6:31 remaining.
On Fisher's first play after the ensuing kick return, Andrew Bashford (East Rockaway, NY/East Rockaway) would force a Cardinal fumble which was recovered by A.J. Sakac (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) and the Hawks had the ball back on their own 41 yard-line.
Two plays later, Pine found Carl Holmes (Cuba, NY/Cuba-Rushford) for a 53-yard touchdown catch and Korey Jubie (Kingston, NY/Kingston) added the extra point to cut the margin to 29 points, 42-13.
After the Hartwick defense forced a punt, Pine would drive the Hawks deep into Fisher territory once again. He hit Brad Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) for two receptions for a total of 50 yards in the drive. But the Hawks only got to the Fisher 12, as an interception in the end zone would end the game with 10 seconds left in the contest.
John Garcia would throw for 146 yards and a touchdown on 14 completions for Hartwick. Pine finished 5-of-7 for 115 passing yards and a score. Williams made seven catches for 104 yards and a touchdown.
Sakac made a game-high 11 tackles to go along with his fumble recovery. Bashford added eight hits and the forced fumble. Dante Crump (Kingston, NY/Kingston) and Midnet Cantave (Spring Valley, NY/Spring Valley) each made seven tackles. Crump also forced a fumble.
Marcus Mistersaro (Leroy, NY/Leroy) had two tackles for a loss on the day. Gene Allen (Laurel, NY/Mattituck) also recorded a fumble recovery.
Hartwick will be back on the road next Saturday at Salisbury. The Hawks and Sea Gulls kickoff at 1 p.m.
Hawks Beaten By Nationally Ranked Fisher
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141011_xwv8.xml
2014
Hartwick
13
St. John Fisher
42
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hartwick (2-3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 13 |
| No. 21 St. John Fisher (4-1) | 7 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 42 |
Oct 11, 2014