ONEONTA, NY – Visiting Morrisville State rallied for 22 unanswered fourth quarter points to pull out a 43-40 victory over Hartwick at Wright Stadium Saturday.
The Hawks had went ahead 40-21 in the fourth following two straight pick-sixes from David Van Alstine (Otego, NY/Unatego Central) and Nate Farley (Amsterdam, NY/Amsterdam) 22 seconds apart, but three straight touchdown passes from Lemar Johnson to three separate receivers over the final 10:44 would put the Mustangs ahead to stay. The Mustangs had the ball for just 3:01 total over their touchdown-scoring drives in the fourth.
On the ensuing possession after Morrisville took the lead, the Hawks drove to the Mustangs' 35 with less than four seconds left and quarterback John Garcia (Warwick, NY/Warwick Valley) hit Tanner Williams (Eagle Bride, NY/Hoosick Valley) at the Morrisville nine yard-line but he was tackled by Deston Treasure to end the contest.
'Wick running back Greg Bell (Liverpool, NY/Liverpool) had a career day with 51 carries for 331 yards and three touchdowns.
The Hawks got on the scoreboard first as they took the opening kickoff and drove 55 yards on 13 plays. Garcia found tight end Marcus Mistersaro (Leroy, NY/Leroy) for a one-yard touchdown and Hawks were up 7-0 after six minutes of action following Sam Clark's (Jersey City, NJ/Hudson Catholic) extra point.
The game remained 7-0 through the first quarter of play. Morrisville would tie the game up on their first possession of the second following an interception. The Mustangs marched 95 yards capped off by a Johnson 16-yard run into the end zone.
The Hawks got the ball back and gave it to Bell six consecutive plays with his final rush getting him into the end zone for a 5-yard score.
The 'Wick defense forced a punt on Morrisville's next possession and Bell got the ball once again. His number was called eight straight plays as he drove the Hawks 48 yards. Bell finished off the drive with a one-yard touchdown run and the Hawks were in front 20-7 with less than two minutes to go in the half.
Just enough time was left on the clock for the Mustangs as they drove 58 yards on eight plays with Johnson scoring a touchdown from three yards out with less than two seconds to play before the half.
Morrisville received the ball to start the second half trailing 20-14, but the Hawks' defense would force a punt. After two Bell running plays, Garcia hit Williams for passing plays of 31 yards and 22 yards to move the ball quickly up the field. Bell scored his third touchdown of the game with a 13-yard run and the Hawks extended their advantage to 12 points, 26-14.
Following another Mustang punt, 'Wick ate up six and a half minutes driving 79 yards, but a Morrisville interception on their own three yard-line stopped the Hawks' scoring threat.
Seven plays later, Johnson hit Cristian Pena for a 49-yard score and the visitors trimmed the margin to five, 26-21.
The Hawks had the ball heading into the fourth quarter but the Mustang defense would come up with a stop giving them a chance to take the lead for the first time. However, on Morrisville's second play from scrimmage, Van Alstine came up with the big interception and he ran it back 44 yards for the score. After the kickoff, Johnson was then picked off on his first throw by Farley who ran it back 42 yards and the Hawks lead was 19 in a span of 22 seconds.
Morrisville got points back quickly as a big return of 48 yards from Josh Powell gave the Mustangs good field position. Three plays later, Johnson hit Anthony Gray for a 41-yard touchdown making the score 40-28.
After a three and out, Morrisville scored again in five plays with a Johnson to Powell six-yard score finishing off the drive and the Hartwick lead was down to five, 40-35 with under six minutes left.
The Hawks would drive all the way to the Morrisville five, thanks in part to a Bell 40-yard scamper, and they looked to close out the game. A 'Wick penalty, however, pushed them back to the Mustang 19 and the Hawks were forced to attempt a field goal. The kick from Korey Jubie (Kingston, NY/Kington) was blocked and Morrisville had the ball on their own 32 with under two minutes on the clock.
After penalties on their first two plays, the Mustangs picked up two first downs. On a 3rd and 10 from the Hartwick 22, Johnson found Anthony Mella in the corner of the end zone and the Mustangs had their first lead of the game. They tacked on the two-point conversion and led 43-40 with 34 seconds remaining.
The Hawks worked the sideline and completed four straight plays to reach the Morrisville 35. With just a few ticks left, Garcia threw to the end zone and a Mustang defender batted the ball into the hands of Williams inside the 10 yard-line but Treasure was there to bring him down and end the contest.
For the Hawks, who gained 492 yards of offense, Garcia completed 13 passes for a144 yards and one score. Williams caught three passes for 79 yards receiving.
Johnson would have a hand in all six of Morrisville's touchdowns with four through the air and two on the ground. He finished with 290 yards passing on 19 completions to go along with 87 yards rushing.
Matthew Ali (Sayville, NY/Sayville) led Hartwick in tackles with seven. Dante Crump (Kingston, NY/Kingston) added six hits and Jared Morrow (Ogdensburg, NY/Ogdensburg Free) and Michael Servider (Carmel, NY/Carmel) each contributed five.
Hartwick opens up Empire 8 play next Saturday on the road. The Hawks play #19 Ithaca at 1 p.m.
Hartwick Stunned By Morrisville, 43-40
/seasons/2014/boxscores/20140913_99ow.xml
2014
Morrisville State
43
Hartwick
40
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morrisville State (2-0) | 0 | 14 | 7 | 22 | 43 |
| Hartwick (1-1) | 7 | 13 | 6 | 14 | 40 |
Sep 13, 2014