ITHACA, N.Y. – The nationally ranked No. 12/13 Ithaca College football team limited St. Lawrence University to just 93 yards of total offense and scored a pair of defensive touchdowns on interceptions as the Bombers shutout the Saints, 40-0, at Butterfield Stadium on October 15. The win for IC, which scored 31 points in the second half, elevates its record to 6-0 on the season and 3-0 in the Liberty League, while also extending its winning streak of SLU to 27 straight games.
The 93 yards allowed by IC on Saturday are the fewest for a defensive until since the Bombers gave up 86 yards to Frostburg State on November 2, 2013. The pick-sixes for Jake Connolly and Tommy Moran, both for 43 yards, marked the first time Ithaca has returned two interceptions for touchdowns since nearly 22 years to the date and against the same team (October 14, 2000), as Tom Kenney and Mark McDonough accomplished the feat.
Ithaca held St. Lawrence to just 13 yards passing on 3-of-16 attempts as Antwan Robinson also recorded an interception to help the Bombers set a school record for fewest passing yards allowed in a game. IC also limited St. Lawrence to just four first downs on the day.
Jason Green paced the defense in tackles with seven, while Connolly, Michael Blanchard and Matt DeSimlipciis each logged six.
Offensively, the Bombers totaled 478 yards and 29 first downs on 280 yards passing and 198 yards rushing.
A.J. Wingfield threw for 249 yards on 22-of-35 attempts and two touchdowns, while Max Perry was 3-for-6 for 31 yards and a score. Michael Anderson recorded 122 yards receiving, with a long of 59 yards, on eight receptions and a score, while Julien Deumaga and Jon Crowley also hauled in touchdown grabs.
Bill Tedeschi had 37 yards on three catches, while Sam Kline finished the game with 28 yards on three receptions. Tyrell Penalba (one catch, 14 yards) and Jake Ross (one catch, 11 yards) also got in on the action.
On the ground, Jalen Leonard-Osbourne had 93 yards on 11 attempts, while Perry rushed for 39 yards on six carries. Donte Garcia and Jake Williams each ran for 22 yards, while Ryan Brozovic had 19 yards on three carries.
Despite putting up 40 points in the game, IC struggled to score offensive in the first half, as the Bombers led just 9-0 heading into intermission.
Ithaca received the opening kick and quicky moved down the field as Wingfield hit Tedeschi for 21 yards on the first play from scrimmage. The Bombers would then pick up a fourth down conversion to continue the drive but turned the ball over on a fumble at the St. Lawrence 5-yard line.
The Saints would go three-and-out and punted back to IC at midfield. The Bombers faced another fourth down, and were once again successful, and then connected on a 29-yard strike from Wingfield to Anderson to move the ball down to the SLU 5-yard line. IC would go up 6-0 on the next snap as Wingfield found Deumaga, but the two-point conversion failed.
IC quickly got the ball back but gave it right back as a snap sailed over Wingfield's head and SLU recovered in plus territory.
The Saints would move down to IC's 12-yard line by the end of the quarter, but after changing sides of the field, SLU was stuffed on three straight runs with less than a yard to gain to turn the ball over on downs.
IC got back on the board with 4:08 remaining as Nicholas Bahamonde booted a 24-yard field goal to give IC a 9-0 edge. The Bombers would have another chance to add points heading into intermission, but Wingfield was intercepted inside the 10-yard on the final play of the half.
Out of the break, IC blew the game open with 24 points in the third quarter. After a three-and-out for SLU, Anderson took a touch pass from Wingfield and raced around the left side of the field for a 59-yard score with 13:41 left in the period.
Three minutes later, Connolly corralled a dropped pass and took it to the house for the pick-six and extended IC's lead to 23-0.
Barely a minute after that, Robinson notched his interception to give the Bombers possession at the SLU 42 with 9:06 left. The Bombers would then move down into the red zone and settled for a 31-yard Bahamonde field goal to make it a 26-0 different with 4:52 on the clock.
The lead grew to 33-0 with 3:52 left as Moran intercepted a pass along the right side line and scooted into the end zone for the second defense score on the day.
Ithaca tacked on its final touchdown with 9:10 left in the game as Perry found Crowley for a 6-yard score.
The Bombers will travel to Buffalo State next Friday night, October 21 for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Defense Takes Over as No. 12/13 Ithaca Blanks St. Lawrence, 40-0
/seasons/2022/boxscores/20221015_8ts8.xml
2022
St. Lawrence
0
Ithaca
40
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Lawrence (2-4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 10 Ithaca (6-0) | 6 | 3 | 24 | 7 | 40 |
Oct 15, 2022