ONEONTA, NY – Late in the first quarter, Hartwick football trailed visiting Alfred 20-3, but the Hawks turned the tables on the Saxons, outscoring them 20-3 in the second half to earn their first Empire 8 Conference win of the season, 34-30. The Hawks improve to 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the league. Alfred drops to 3-2 and 1-2 in E8. The win for Hartwick is its first over the Saxons since 2008.
After the Hawks had forged ahead 28-27 late in the third quarter, a Trevor Monk 39-yard field goal handed the advantage back to Alfred, 30-28, with 6:37 left in the game. But two minutes, 40 seconds later,
John Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) delivered a pass in the end zone to Tanner Williams (Eagle Bridge, NY/Hoosick Falls) for the duo's third touchdown connection of the day and Hartwick was in front to stay.
AU got the ball back but the Hartwick defense shut them down on four plays and the Hawks ran out the clock after getting the football back.
Williams was unstoppable for the Hawks hauling in nine catches for 207 yards and three scores. He made critical catches all day for 'Wick. Garcia finished with 15 completions for 269 yards and the three passing touchdowns to Williams. Korey Jubie (Kingston, NY/Kingston) hit a pair of field goals on the day for the Hawks.
Defensively, Hartwick registered nine tackles for a loss of 25 yards, including three sacks, to go along with four takeaways. Nick Sorrenti (Endwell, NY/Maine-Endwell) led Hartwick with nine tackles and Matthew Ali (Sayville, NY/Sayville) added eight with an interception.
Jubey gave Hartwick a 3-0 lead following a 48-yard Garcia to Williams catch on the opening drive. Alfred took the kickoff 63 yards and the Saxons scored three plays later on a Sammy Davis 19-yard run and they led by a count of 7-3.
Alfred added to its total after a Hartwick fumble in its own end. Corry Wallace recovered at the 'Wick 28 and Casey Bright made it into the end zone four plays later from eight yards out and AU upped its advantage to eleven, 14-3.
An interception led to another Saxon score. After getting the ball back, the Saxons marched 67 yards on five plays for a 20-3 edge. On the PAT, Midnet Cantave (Spring Valley, NY/Spring Valley) scooped up a fumble and ran it back 95 yards to put two more points on the board for 'Wick.
A Williams' touchdown catch for 21 yards gave the Hawks six more points just inside the second quarter. It capped a 7-play, 86-yard drive and the gap was narrowed to nine, 20-11.
Jubie made it 20-14 with a 25-yard field goal but a Rodney Etienne 70-yard touchdown catch from quarterback Tyler Johnson made it a double-digit lead once again for AU with nine minutes left in the half.
Each team had the ball twice more in the half but neither produced any points and Alfred led 27-14 at the break.
The Saxons got the ball first in the second half but the Hawks forced a punt which was shanked for only 10 yards to give 'Wick the ball at the AU 34.
Four plays later, Greg Bell (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) rumbled 12 yards for the touchdown and Jubie's extra point cut the Hartwick deficit to six, 27-21.
Johnson, who threw for 112 yards and two scores and ran for another 64 yards for the Saxons into the third quarter, was injured on Alfred's next series and did not return. The Saxons would only muster three points the rest of the way.
The Hawks caught a break later in the third quarter as a fumbled punt return was recovered by Andrew Bashford (East Rockaway, NY/East Rockaway) on the Alfred 27. They would score four plays later on a Williams catch from Garcia from 14 yards out to tie the game at 27. Jubie put the Hawks in front with the PAT just before the end of the third quarter.
In the fourth, the Saxons recovered a fumble and turned it into three points. Trevor Monk hit a 39-yard field goal and AU had the lead again, 30-28, with under seven minutes left in the contest.
On the next possession, Garcia hit Williams for 30 yards to get into AU territory. Then on a fourth and 9, Williams hauled in a 19-yard reception from Garcia to keep the drive alive with just over four minutes left. After a 'Wick timeout, the pair hooked up again for a 21-yard score and Hartwick led for good.
Alfred would turn it over on downs and the Hawks would begin to kill the clock. They faced a 4th and 4 with under three minutes showing on the clock and a Williams' 4-yard catch forced a measurement. It went Hartwick's way for the game-sealing first down and the hosts ran out the clock to cap the win.
A.J. Sakac (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) contributed six tackles for Hartwick on the day. Gene Allen (Laurel, NY/Mattituck), Michael Servider (Carmel, NY/Carmel), and Chris Mercieca (Centerreach, NY/Centerreach) each added five hits, Marcus Mistersaro (Leroy, NY/Leroy) registered two tackles for a loss in the game.
The Hartwick Hawks continue in Empire 8 play next Saturday. The Hawks visit nationally ranked St. John Fisher with a 1 p.m. kickoff time.
Hawks Battle Back to Take Down Alfred, 34-30
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20141004_cybz.xml
2014
Alfred
30
Hartwick
34
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfred (3-2) | 20 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 30 |
| Hartwick (2-2) | 5 | 9 | 14 | 6 | 34 |
Oct 04, 2014