CORTLAND, N.Y. - Christian Colasurdo's 32-yard field on the game's final play completed a Susquehanna comeback from a 14-point deficit with less than five minutes remaining and the nationally 22nd-ranked River Hawks stunned 10th-ranked Cortland, 38-35, at Cortland's Grady Field. Susquehanna improved to 3-0 with the victory while Cortland fell to 2-1.
The comeback overshadowed strong performances from Cortland quarterback Zac Boyes (Buffalo/Kenmore West) and wide receivers JJ Laap (Stony Brook/Ward Melville) and Cole Burgess (Greenwich). Boyes completed 11-of-17 passes for 397 yards and a school record-tying five touchdowns. Laap caught five passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns and Burgess finished with three catches for 129 yards and two scores.
Susquehanna quarterback Josh Ehrlich led the way for the River Hawks, rushing 19 times for 162 yards and a touchdown and completing 16-of-22 passes for 227 yards and three scores. Kyle Howes finished with nine receptions for 142 yards and a touchdown and Tommy Grabowski ran for 100 yards and a score on 25 carries.
Jack Winey (Lindenhurst) led Cortland's defense with 18 tackles, seven solo, and Matt Lotter (Fredonia) made 11 stops. Jaden Martinez (Comsewogue) added eight tackles and Will Ruckert (Lindenhurst) intercepted a pass. Susquehanna's Garrett Carter ended with nine tackles and Josh Buck and Cameron Noble made six tackles each.
Trailing 35-21, Susquehanna started a drive at the Cortland 44-yard line with 5:22 remaining. The River Hawks scored on three plays - a 30-yard Ehrlich run, a 2-yard Grabowski rush and a 12-yard TD pass from Ehrlich to Rowen Hershey. Susuqehanna then forced Cortland into a three-and-out and a short punt and got the ball back at the Cortland 36-yard line with 2:20 left. Ehrlich ran for 21 yards to the 15-yard line, then threw a 15-yard TD pass to Howes for the tying score with 1:39 left.
Susquehanna kicked off from its own 20-yard line due to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty following the touchdown. Cortland returned the kickoff to its 31-yard line but Brennan Miller forced a fumble on the play that Dominic Winn recovered. After three rushes that milked most of the remaining time, Susquehanna and Cortland each called a timeout with two seconds left. Colasurdo followed with the game-winning field goal.
The guests opened the game with a 75-yard TD drive, capped by a 12-yard pass from Ehrlich to Eddie Nugent, to take a 7-0 lead. Cortland answered quickly when Boyes hit Laap on an 80-yard TD bomb on the first play of the next series. The Red Dragons went up 14-7 on Ashton Capone's (Saratoga Springs) 12-yard TD catch from Boyes with 19 seconds left in the first.
Susquehanna's ensuing 75-yard drive ended with a Grabowski 3-yard TD run early in the second to tie the game at 14-14. Boyes and Laap connected for an 89-yard TD pass with 4:56 left before the half to give the hosts a 21-14 halftime lead. Burgess caught TD passes of 58 and 33 yards in the third quarter, sandwiched around an Ehrlich 14-yard TD run, to put Cortland up 35-21 after three quarters.
Cortland held a slight 495-484 advantage in total offense. The Red Dragons led in passing yards, 397-227, but Susquehanna ran for 257 yards to Cortland's 98. Jaden AlfanoStJohn (Westhampton/Westhampton Beach) accounted for most of that rushing total for Cortland with 83 yards on 17 carries. Susquehanna ran 73 plays from scrimmage to Cortland's 44 and held a 37:51-22:09 advantage in time of possession.
No. 10 Cortland Falls to No. 22 Susquehanna, 38-35, After Late Rally by River Hawks
/seasons/2023/boxscores/20230916_n8zn.xml
2023
Susquehanna
38
Cortland
35
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 9 Susquehanna (3-0) | 7 | 7 | 7 | 17 | 38 |
| No. 11 Cortland (2-1) | 14 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
Sep 16, 2023