GENEVA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College football team managed to produce just 177 yards of offense against a stingy defensive unit for No. 25 Hobart College on Saturday night at Boswell Field in Geneva, N.Y. The Hobart defense also notched six sacks en route to a 23-3 victory. Ithaca drops to 1-1 on the season, while Hobart improves to 3-0.
On the opening drive of the game, Ithaca marched 65 yards before the drive stalled at the Hobart 7-yard line. Freshman
DJ Ellis would connect on a 24-yard field goal to give Ithaca an early 3-0 lead. Ithaca used 4:39 of the clock on nine plays, highlighted by a 36-yard connection between senior
Wolfgang Shafer to freshman
Will Gladney that brought the Bombers down to Hobart's 24-yard line.
Hobart answered right back with a seven-play, 70-yard drive that lasted just 2:31 on the ensuing possession. The Statesmen's first play from scrimmage went 42 yards in the air from Shane Sweeney to Brandon Shed. Six plays later, Sweeney found Shed in the back of the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown.
The Bombers would pin Hobart back to its own 10-yard line after a punt from junior
Pat Minogue, but the Statesmen drove right down the field on nine plays to build their lead to 13-3 in 3:52 of game time.
Sweeney connected with Shed once again for a 16-yard touchdown with just under a minute left in the quarter. Shed caught five passes in the first quarter for 98 yards and a pair of scores.
Early on in the second period, Hobart added three points to its lead, 16-3, with a 36-yard field goal.
Facing a stiff breeze for the entirety of the second quarter, the Bombers managed just 52 yards in the period. Ithaca got down to the Hobart 31-yard line on its final drive of the half, but an interception at the 3-yard line ended the possession.
The Statesmen received the kickoff to start the second half, but went three-and-out on their first possession. Ithaca would take over at its own 40 and used 13 plays to get down to the Hobart 21-yard line, but turned the ball over on downs.
A steady rain would bog down both offenses for the remainder of the quarter, as Ithaca and Hobart combined to generate just 20 yards after the Bombers' first possession (64 total yards in the quarter). One Hobart drive ended after the second play on an interception by junior
Jordan Schemm.
Ithaca punted on the opening snap of the fourth quarter, which reached the Hobart 43-yard line. The Statesmen ended the scoring drought after manufacturing a six-play, 57-yard drive. Hobart ended the drive with an eight-yard run.
Schemm would set the Bombers up for a chance to get back in the game with a 59-yard kickoff return, but Ithaca turned the ball over on downs and lost 11 yards on the possession.
A pair of punts and turnover on downs for both teams wound down the remaining eight-plus minutes of action as Hobart came away with the 23-3 win.
Shafer finished the game 14-of-36 passing for 122 yards and an interception. Junior
Tristan Brown led the running attack for Ithaca with 34 yards on eight carries, while fellow junior
Evan Skea ran for 31 yards on eight touches. Senior
Myles LaFrance caught four passes for 26 yards, while Gladney had the one grab for 36 yards.
Defensively, juniors
Dan Loizos and
Kenny Bradley each notched eight tackles. Seniors
Skyler Kauf and
Devan Shambo, and sophomore
Pat Minogue each tallied seven tackles.
Loizos also had two tackles for a loss, while Minogue had 2.5.
Hobart's offense racked up 324 yards in the contest. Sweeney finished with 225 yards and two touchdowns on 18-for-31 passing, while Joe Letizia recorded 71 rushing yards on 13 carries. Shed caught seven passes for 115 yards and a pair of scores.
Six different Statesmen tallied at least a half-a-sack on the evening.
The Bombers will look to get back on the winning track next Saturday, September 24 at Alfred University. It will be Ithaca's Empire 8 Conference opener for the 1 p.m. kickoff at Yunevich Stadium.
Video shot and produced by Josh Mitnick
