ONEONTA, N.Y. – The Hartwick College football team mounted a fourth-quarter comeback but came up just short in a 24-17, Empire 8 loss to Alfred State on Saturday afternoon at Wright Stadium. The Hawks scored all 17 of their points in the final quarter, cutting a 17-point deficit to as little as three before the Pioneers were able to push their lead back to 10 and settle for a seven-point win.
Senior running back
Akil Williams (Chester, N.Y./Chester) led the Hartwick offense with 143 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 27 carries. Williams scored on runs of eight and 41 yards in the fourth quarter to spark the Hawks' comeback.
Freshman quarterback
Ty'lyn Blackwell-Williams (Nyack, N.Y./Georgia) completed 18 of 26 passes for 164 yards. Junior wide receiver
Latrell Willis (Warwick, N.Y./Warwick Valley) led the Hawks with six receptions for 70 yards, while freshman
Miles Sinclair (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by the Sea) added seven catches for 65 yards.
Hartwick finished with 337 total yards, including 173 on the ground, and recorded 21 first downs. The Hawks converted five of 12 third-down attempts and went 1-for-4 on fourth down.
Defensively, junior
Nathan Hartman (Winfield, N.Y./Mount Markham) recorded nine tackles, including one sack for eight yards. Senior
Robert Kennedy (Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y./Hastings) added eight tackles, while senior
Joseph Algieri (Huntington, N.Y./Huntington) finished with seven.
Hartwick falls to 1-6 overall and 0-5 in Empire 8 play, while Alfred State improves to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in league action. The Hawks next play on Saturday, Oct. 31 at Morrisville for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
Alfred State opened the scoring in the first quarter touchdown pass from Chase Shepanski to Jordan Jackson, giving the Pioneers a 7-0 lead. They added a 17-yard rushing touchdown by Ryan Joseph early in the second quarter before a 30-yard field goal at the halftime buzzer extended the advantage to 17-0.
After a scoreless third quarter, Hartwick broke through early in the fourth. Williams capped a nine-play, 60-yard drive with an eight-yard touchdown run at 14:13, and freshman
Landon Smith's (La Plata, Md./North Point) extra point made it 17-7.
The Hawks continued their push less than five minutes later. After a nine yard gain from Willis in the air, Williams picked up a first down with a five year run and then broke free on the next play for a 41-yard touchdown run at 9:37, bringing Hartwick within three, 17-14, after Smith's extra point
Alfred State responded with a lengthy drive, covering 80 yards over 15 plays and taking 7:19 off the clock. Shepanski finished the drive with a 14-yard rushing touchdown with 2:10 remaining, pushing the Pioneers' lead to 24-14.
Hartwick answered by driving 59 yards in eight plays as they looked to get back within one score. The Hawks elected to have Smith kick a 38-yard field goal with 43 seconds remaining to make it a one-score game, but the Hawks were unable to get the ball back on the onside kick for another possession as Alfred State secured the 24-17 victory.
