ITHACA, N.Y.—The Hobart College football team's 32-game regular season winning streak came to an end this afternoon as Ithaca College defended its home field 24-6. The Statesmen's first regular season loss since Nov. 5, 2011, drops their record to 2-1, while the Bombers improve to 2-0.
The 16th-ranked Statesmen struggled to get their offense on track against the 24th-ranked Bombers, managing just 159 yards. Hobart was further hampered by six turnovers, including three on its first three possessions.
"We turned the ball over too much," Hobart Head Coach Mike Craggsaid. "Ithaca is way too good of a football team for us to give them six turnovers and expect to be able to stay in the game. We shot ourselves in the foot and couldn't overcome it."
Ithaca had just 204 yards of offense, managing a mere 41 on the ground, but did a better job of taking care of the ball, losing just two fumbles.
Despite throwing interceptions on its first two possessions of the game, the Statesmen didn't lose any ground to the Bombers thanks to their defense which forced a punt and recovered a fumble on Ithaca's first two possessions. Hobart took a costly penalty on Ithaca's second punt of the day, getting backed up to its own 3. Three plays later, senior defensive lineman Logan Murphy recovered a Statesmen fumble in the end zone for the day's first score.
Early in the second quarter, senior Josh Oliver broke free for a 60-yard punt return, setting the Bomber offense up at the Hobart 17. The Statesmen defense held firm and forced the home team to settle for a 33-yard field goal by senior Max Rottenecker.
Ithaca added another touchdown late in the half when junior quarterback Wolfgang Shafer completed a 16-yard pass to Oliver. The four-play, 45-yard march was the longest scoring drive of the game. The Bombers took a 17-0 lead into halftime.
The Statesmen, playing without injured quarterback Shane Sweeney, gave sophomore Thomas Sydeski the start. He was 6-of-15 for 30 yards with two interceptions in the first half.
Hobart turned to senior quarterback Parker Thelander to start the second half. He led the Statesmen into Bomber territory with the first drive of the second half, but Ithaca broke up Thelander's fourth-and-5 pass to kill the momentum.
Hobart continued to stand strong on defense, forcing the Bombers to punt on their first two possessions of the second half. On the second punt, senior Jacob Stanley broke through the protection and blocked the punt giving the Statesmen offense a short field. Three plays and 17 yards later, first-year running back Tynard Barfield scored on a 12-yard run to put Hobart on the board. The extra point hit the upright, leaving the Bombers a 17-6 lead late in the third quarter.
The defense gave the ball right back to the Hobart offense when junior linebacker Marcus Jemison sacked Shafer, jarring the ball loose. Junior defensive end James Hedger pounced on the ball for the Statesmen at the Ithaca 27. Four plays later, Thelander ran into his own man in the back field, losing the ball in the process. The Bombers recovered spoiling the Hobart opportunity.
Ithaca put the game out of reach by capitalizing on the Statesmen's third interception and final turnover of the game. Kenney Bradley's pick and 19-yard return put the Bombers in business at the Hobart 7. Three plays later Tristan Brown scored on a 1-yard plunge with 2:57 remaining.
Shafer was 13-of-24 for 163 yards with a touchdown. Brian Balsamo had three catches for a team-high 45 yards. On the ground, Evan Skea gained 31 yards on 13 carries for the Bombers. Defensively, Dan Loizos notched nine tackles and recovered two fumbles.
Thelander was 7-of-14 for 61 yards with an interception in the final 30 minutes for Hobart. Junior wide receiver Jack Pfohl pulled in a game-high four passes for 22 yards. Senior running back Conner Hartigan got 16 carries for a game-high 38 yards. In addition to the blocked punt, Stanley logged a game-high 10 tackles, including two for loss.
"What I'm happy about, is when you go into halftime down 17-0 with all those turnovers, we came out in the third quarter and we fought," Cragg said. "We came after them. We gave the offense good position to make some things happen. Unfortunately, we only put up 6 points. But as a team, we fought. We played better in the second half."
Hobart will open Liberty League play on Saturday, Sept. 26, visiting Merchant Marine. Kickoff in Kings Point is scheduled for 2 p.m.
#24 Ithaca halts #16 Hobart’s regular season win streak
/seasons/2015/boxscores/20150919_xxwd.xml
2015
Hobart
6
Ithaca
24
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hobart (2-1) | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Ithaca (2-0) | 7 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
Sep 19, 2015