Cortland, N.Y. – December 7, 2024 – The Springfield College football team delivered the biggest win in program history as it knocked off the defending national champions in No. 2 Cortland, 40-28, in the NCAA Division III Championship Third Round on Saturday afternoon at Grady Field.
With the win, Springfield improved to 12-0 on the year and will travel to face No. 1 North Central in the NCAA Division III Championship Quarterfinals next Saturday. The Pride entered the game ranked 20th in the AFCA Division III National Coaches Poll and 23rd in the D3football.com Poll.
For Springfield, it has proven to be a historic season on a number of fronts. The 12 wins are the most in program history, while Springfield pushed its season-rushing total to 5,327 to set a new NCAA Division III record for yards in a season, besting Maine Maritime's previous record of 5,188 which was set in 2010.
Arsen Shtefan (West Hartford, Conn.) carried the ball 29 times for 148 yards and two scores, while both Blane Hart (East Lyme, Conn.) and Drew Heenan (Londonderry, N.H.) each rushed for 87 yards and two scores apiece. Defensively, Colby Richardson (East Hartford, Conn.) tallied 11 tackles and an interception and Nick Gonzalez (Parsippany, N.J.) produced eight tackles and three pass breakups.
Springfield held the ball for 35:09 in the contest, including 10:49 in the final quarter, and went 4-for-5 on fourth down. The 40 points was the most allowed by Cortland since it surrendered 48 points to Ithaca on November 11, 2017.
Springfield took the opening drive of the game 75 yards in 13 plays for the game's first touchdown at the 8:52 mark. The Pride converted a pair of fourth downs on the drive before Heenan found room up the middle from a yard out for a score. The extra point was blocked as Springfield took an early 6-0 lead.
The hosts needed just one play to respond as Zac Boyes found Jayson Zeva behind the coverage for a 71-yard strike and the Red Dragons earned a 7-6 advantage just 10 seconds later. Springfield answered right back with a huge play on special teams when Bradley Barcello (Weston, Conn.) took the ensuing kickoff 98 yards to give the Pride the ball on the hosts one-yard line. Shtefan then plowed his way over the goal line at the 8:20 mark which allowed Springfield to regain a 13-7 lead.
The Pride's special teams again came up in impressive fashion when Hunter Hayes (Auburn, Maine) popped a fumble out on the kickoff and recovered it to give Springfield the ball back on the Cortland 27 yard line. Seven plays later, Hart took a pitch from four yards out for the Pride's third rushing touchdown in the opening nine-plus minutes of the game as the visitors lead grew to 20-7.
After the teams traded a pair of possessions, the hosts would make it a one-score game five plays later on an Ethan Gallo two-yard score with just over nine minutes remaining in the first half. The teams would trade turnovers, with Springfield losing another fumble before Richardson snagged an interception and returned it 33 yards to the Cortland 46-yard line. Springfield manufactured a nine-play drive, including another fourth-down conversion, and Shtefan punched in his second score of the game after slicing through the defense for a nine-yard TD just under 90 seconds on the clock. However, Cortland would benefit from a 49-yard kick return and march 50 yards in 1:12 seconds as Boyes zipped a one-yard pass Jaden AlfanoStJohn to close out a thrilling first half as Springfield went into the halftime break with a 27-21 advantage.
Cortland took the opening drive 76 yards in 10 plays and regained a 28-27 lead at the 9:55 mark after Boyes got free on the perimeter on fourth down from a yard out. The lead was short lived as Springfield found the end zone 26 seconds later when Heenan found the edge and raced 55 yards untouched for a touchdown at the 9:25 mark.
The teams would each come up empty on their next two possessions and a Cortland punt was downed on the Springfield two yard line with 8:51 remaining in regulation. Springfield went to work with a remarkable, 12-play, 98 yard drive which was highlighted by a sensational 46-yard third down conversion from Hart which brought the ball inside the Cortland 10. Three plays later, Hart ripped off a five-yard score to make it a 40-28 contest with 2:11 on the clock.
Cortland would drive all the way down to the Springfield four yard line, but on fourth down, Cameron Hart (East Lyme, Conn.) stuffed a run at the line of scrimmage to seal the historic win for the Pride.
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No. 20/23 Springfield Knocks Off No. 2 Cortland, 40-28, In NCAA Division III Championship Third Round
/seasons/2024/boxscores/20241207_rkr4.xml
2024
Springfield
40
Cortland
28
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 23 Springfield (12-0) | 20 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 40 |
| No. 2 Cortland (11-1) | 7 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
Dec 07, 2024