Box Score

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The 20th-ranked Ithaca College football team wrapped up its regular season with a last-minute defeat at the hands of visiting Cortland 28-24 on Saturday at Butterfield Stadium. Cortland scored the winning touchdown with 1:08 remaining in the fourth quarter on a 41-yard touchdown pass.

Ithaca wraps up the regular season with an 8-2 record and won the Empire 8 with a 6-1 mark in conference play. The Bombers claimed the league's automatic qualification spot to the 2013 NCAA Division III Football Championship. Ithaca's opponent and game location will be announced Sunday at 6 p.m. at NCAA.com. Cortland is 6-4.

The back-and-forth game included five lead changes and three ties. Cortland took a seven-point lead on three occasions before Ithaca tied the score each time at 7-7, 14-14 and 21-21 before the Bombers eventually went ahead for the first time at 24-21 with 9:24 left in the fourth quarter. That set the stage for Cortland's late-game score. Each team committed three turnovers, but two of Ithaca's turnovers came in the fourth quarter.

Cortland took a 7-0 lead on a 6-yard run from Dylan Peebles with 1:39 remaining in the first quarter. After Ithaca went three-and-out, Cortland's punt returner fumbled and it was recovered by the Bombers. On the next play from scrimmage, Ithaca wide receiver Vito Boffoli took a handoff from quarterback Tom Dempsey on a slot end around, and threw the ball downfield to receiver Joel Lynch for a 37-yard touchdown.

The Red Dragons regained the lead on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Hughes to Joel Nunez with 5:50 left in the second quarter.

Ithaca knotted the score again before halftime with a 16-play, 75-yard drive that covered five minutes, 39 seconds on the game clock and was capped by a 3-yard touchdown pass from Dempsey to Boffoli with 16 seconds left in the half to tie the score 14-14.

On the ensuing possession, Cortland fumbled on its first play from scrimmage and it was recovered by the Bombers near midfield. Ithaca had one play remaining before halftime and Dempsey threw a long pass to the end zone where Lynch nearly made a catch in a crowd at the goal line, but it was ruled incomplete.

Cortland took a 21-14 lead on the first possession of the second half on a 63-yard touchdown reception by John Babin on a pass down the right sideline from Hughes with 13:47 left. The Bombers tied the score for a third time on a 6-yard touchdown pass over the middle from Dempsey to Lynch with 1:31 remaining in the third quarter. Evan Skea had a 45-yard run to start that touchdown drive that set Ithaca up at the Cortland 11.

Ithaca punted away with 11 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, but the punt was fumbled again by Cortland and recovered by Malik Morris of Ithaca at Cortland's 20 yard line. After three plays, Ithaca took their first lead on a 32-yard field goal by Garrett Nicholson with 9:24 remaining.

The Bombers forced a three-and-out by Cortland and the Red Dragons punted to Ithaca's Sam Carney, who returned the ball 44 yards to the Cortland 23-yard line, but Ithaca fumbled it back to the Red Dragons near the red zone.

Ithaca stopped the next Cortland drive, and regained possession with 5:05 left to play and generated one first down, then punted away to Cortland with 2:28 left. The Red Dragons moved 34 yards in four plays, then connected on the game-winning 41-yard touchdown pass.

In Ithaca's final drive, the Bombers moved the ball past midfield with 41 seconds left, but a fumble gave it back to Cortland to run out the clock.

Ithaca's Evan Skea led all rushers with 110 yards on 25 carries. Quarterback Tom Dempsey was 23-for-34 for 216 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Boffoli had five catches for 51 yards and also threw the touchdown pass to Lynch. Lynch had four catches for 59 yards and two touchdowns. Jared Prugar led all Ithaca receivers with a career-best seven catches and a total of 79 yards.

The Bomber defense was led by Marc Recio with seven total tackles in his first start of the season at linebacker. Mike Sheldon had six tackles including two sacks and two tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.

BOMBER NOTES

* Ithaca's 23 members of its senior class were recognized prior to the game, along with senior assistant coaches Mark Panarelli and Ben Mendelson.

* At halftime, class of 1993 alum Jeff Wittman was honored for his induction earlier this year to the National Football Foundation College Football Hall of Fame. Wittman is a three-time first-team All-American.

* Skea had his third 100-yard rushing game of the season, and is the first freshman to have three 100-yard rushing games since Jamie Donovan achieved that mark five times in 2004.

* This was the 55th meeting between Cortland and Ithaca for the Cortaca Jug. Ithaca holds a 34-21 advantage in the series since the trophy game was installed in 1959. In the overall series record between the teams, Ithaca leads 39-30-3 in a series that dates back to 1930.

* It was the third 200-yard passing game of the season for Tom Dempsey, and Phil Neumann also has three 200-yard passing games this year. It's the first time in program history that two Bomber quarterbacks have each hit the 200-yard mark three or more times in the same season.

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