ONEONTA, NY – Hartwick scored first and led by a margin of 12-7 after the first quarter of play, but it was all Ithaca after that as the Bombers scored the next 24 points in a 47-19 Empire 8 win Saturday at Wright Stadium.
The Hawks grabbed a quick lead after punting on the first possession of the game. The first Ithaca snap on its own five yard-line went over quarterback Wolfgang Shafer's head and was recovered in the end zone for a safety and a 2-0 'Wick advantage.
The Hawks took the kickoff and drove 50 yards on nine plays with quarterback
John Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) sealing the drive with a five-yard touchdown run. After
Korey Jubie (Kingston, NY/Kingston) kicked the PAT, the Hawks increased their margin to 9-0.
Ithaca wasted little time getting back in the game as Jordan Schemm took the kickoff back 91 yards for the touchdown to make to make it a 9-7 contest.
Following an Ithaca fumble recovered by Hartwick's
Ryan O'Malley (Lagrangeville, NY/Arlington), a Jubie 28-yard field goal put the Hawks in front 12-7.
The Bombers scored touchdowns on their first three possessions of the second quarter as they grabbed a 24-12 lead, which they brought into halftime.
Ithaca received the kickoff in the second half and scored to up its advantage to 19. The Hawks answered on their first play from scrimmage after the kickoff on a
John Garcia to
Tanner Williams (Eagle Bridge, NY/Hoosick Falls) 72-yard touchdown reception. Jubie's extra point trimmed the gap to 12 points, 31-19.
'Wick had two more possessions with a chance to cut further into the Bomber lead but was forced to punt on both.
Ithaca scored a touchdown early in the fourth quarter for a 44-19 lead and later added a field goal to close out the scoring.
The Bombers would register 434 yards of offense in the game. The Hawks managed 301.
John Garcia threw for 320 yards and one score on 20 completions. He was sacked nine times by the Ithaca defense in the contest.
Williams made 11 receptions for 255 yards for the Hawks. It marks his second straight game with at least 10 catches and at least 240 reception yards.
Michael Servider (Carmel, NY/Carmel) recorded a game-high 10 tackles to lead the 'Wick defense on the day.
Matthew Ali (Sayville, NY/Sayville) contributed nine tackles and
Nick Sorrenti (Endwell, NY/Maine-Endwell) had seven hits, including 2.5 for a loss of eight yards.
Hartwick remains at home next weekend for another Empire 8 opponent. The Hawks host Morrisville State at Wright Stadium at 1 p.m.
