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NEW HAVEN, Conn. – After putting itself in a 17-0 first quarter hole, Cornell rallied to within six points in the second half, but couldn't come all the way back in a 37-17 loss to Yale on Saturday afternoon at the Yale Bowl. The Bulldogs remained unbeaten at 2-0, while the Big Red slipped to 1-1 in the Ivy League opener for both team. The game was televised nationally on the VERSUS Network.

The Big Red was able to move the ball against the Yale defense throughout, particularly after halftime, outgaining the home team 426-405. But a costly penalty here, an untimely turnover there and Yale was able to earn the win and extend the lead in the all-time series to 44-28-2.

Sophomore Jeff Mathews was 26-of-36 passing for 271 yards and a touchdown. He was also intercepted once. Kurt Ondash was his favorite receiver, hauling in eight passes for 104 yards in a return to his home state, while Shane Savage and Luke Tasker combined for 10 receptions for 130 yards. Tasker also caught a touchdown. Sophomore Grant Gellatly just missed his first 100-yard game with 95 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries to lead the Big Red ground game. Defensively, the Big Red blocked a pair of kicks and broke up four passes. Brandon Lainhart had a team-best seven tackles, while Andrew Nelson posted six. Brad Greenway booted a 26-yard field goal to end the first half and connected on both extra-point kicks.

For Yale, Patrick Witt completed 24-of-33 passes for 246 yards and two touchdowns, with Allen Harris catching eight passes for 107 yards and a score. Witt also ran for a touchdown, one of three on the ground for the home team. Alex Thomas, who had 84 yards and eight carries, also scored once, as did Mordecai Cargill.

The Big Red looked to create fireworks on the opening kickoff. Rashad Campbell took the ball two steps into the end zone, and after nearly slipping, righted himself and broke through a hole at the 20. He sprinted all 102 yards to take it all the way to the house. Unbeknownst to him, a flag flew behind the play for a hold, bringing the ball all the way back to the Cornell 44. The Big Red offense converted a third down to move the chains, but Mathews' pass on first down was tipped and intercepted by Yale's Nick Okano at the Yale 43.

Instead of 7-0 Cornell, the Bulldogs flipped the score. Yale marched right down the field and converted on the turnover. Witt picked the Big Red defense apart, finding seams for an 18-yard pass to Harris and a 16-yard gainer to Gio Christodoulou. The Bulldogs completed a seven-play, 57-yard drive when Harris hauled in a perfectly thrown 5-yard pass over his shoulder to make it 7-0 just over five minutes in.

The Big Red offense went three-and-out on the following possession, and a Greenway punt, his first as a collegiate player after freshman Sam Wood wasn't able to make the trip due to sickness, traveled just 23 yards to the Cornell 40. Witt found Harris again over the middle for a diving grab to the 17, then hit him again to the 1. Cargill went the remaining yard for the score. After Phillippe Panico nailed the extra-point, Yale extended its lead to 14-0 with 7:07 showing on the clock.

Another three-and-out by the Big Red offense put the ball back in the hands of  Christodoulou. The ace punt returner made a pair of tacklers miss with spin moves and returned the ball 37 yards to the Cornell 16. The Big Red defense was able to hold, but with the home team already in the red zone, Panico was able to boot home a 32-yard field goal to make it Yale 17-0. 

Cornell started to straighten itself out with a pair of short gainers in the running gamy by Gellatly and a 4-yard pass to Nick Mlady for a first down. Three plays later, Greenway came back on the field for a punt. This one was well-covered, as Kevin Laird nailed the returner as he caught the ball to flip field position and put the Bulldogs back at their own 14.

The second quarter was much quieter than the first, with the only points coming at the gun when Greenway booted a 26-yarder to cut Cornell's deficit to 17-3 at the break.

The Big Red gained some momentum early in the second when Zack Imhoff blocked Panico's 37-yard field goal attempt, but the teams traded punts over the alternating four possessions before the 12-play field goal drive ended the half. Cornell converted three third-downs to keep the chains moving, but settled for Greenway's kick after it ran out of time.

Cornell's defense started the second half by forcing Yale's offense into a three-and-out, but a great punt by Kyle Cazzetta trapped the Big Red offense inside its own 4-yard line. Cornell didn't flinch at the poor field position. A 21-yard bullet to Ondash along the right sidelines got the visitors out of the shadow of their own end zone, and a 6-yard run by Gellatly moved the ball to the 35. Mathews came back after a long media timeout to keep the team's rhythm going, hitting Tasker on a crossing pattern for 25 more yards. Gellatly then faked a pass off a lateral and pulled it down for nine more to the Yale 25. After picking up another first down to the 21, Tasker took a short pass, broke two tackles and sniffed out the end zone with 9:04 left in the third. Greenway's extra point capped the nine-play, 96-yard scoring drive to get the visitors back within 17-10.

With the momentum, Cornell tried a little trickery with an on-sides squib kick, but the Bulldogs recovered around midfield. An 18-yard run by Alex Thomas moved the home team into the red zone, and three plays later Witt floated a corner route into the awaiting hands of Cameron Sandquist. The extra-point was blocked by Justin Harris, keeping Yale up only 23-10.

Consecutive long passes, one to Ondash for 20 yards and another to Savage for 32 more, brought Cornell all the way to the Yale 30. Gellatly took a handoff and did the rest, cutting back once, alluding two tacklers and finding paydirt to get back within 23-17 with 6:11 left in the third.

That was as close as Cornell would get.

Deon Randall continued what had become a track meet, returning the ensuing kickoff to the Big Red 49. Witt continued moving the Yale offense, completing three straight attempts down to the 5, including two more throws to Harris, who went over 100 yards for the day. Andrew Brown made a touchdown saving tackle on a third-and-goal play from the 3, but the Bulldogs went for it on fourth-and-an-inch and the line was able to give him enough push to send him over the goal. The extra-point made it 30-17.

After a short kickoff, Ondash hauled in an 11-yard reception and Savage rushed for five more to get the visitors near midfield. An offensive pass interference call drove the Big Red into a second-and-20, and despite two completions, the Big Red was forced to punt on a fourth-and-1.  Thomas then quickly put the game away, cutting to the right and running untouched for 58 yards to extend Yale's lead to 37-17 with 13:08 remaining.

Cornell moved the ball to midfield, with an 11-yard scramble by Mathews on a third-and-10 giving the visitors some juice on the sidelines. Facing a fourth-and-5 from the Yale 45, Mathews hit Tasker for a first down to keep the drive from stalling. On the very next play, a great diving catch by Savage was nullified by a holding penalty, pushing Cornell back and setting up a first-and-20. A short pass to Ondash put him over 100 receiving yards for the first time in his career, but Gellatly fumbled on the next carry and the loose ball was recovered by the Bulldogs

Yale began using the clock to its advantage, chewing up time and yardage on the ground. Witt kept the drive alive by alluding three would-beck tacklers and avoiding the sack, completing an on-the-run pass for a third-down conversion. The time continued to roll off the clock, with Yale eventually turning it over on downs with just over two minutes remaining.

With a line of reserves coming on in the final moments, the Big Red put the ball into the hands of freshman running back Ahmad Avery, who carried for the first time in his collegiate career, tallied 31 yards on five carries as the clock ticked away.

Cornell returns home for the first of consecutive games at Schoellkopf Field when it meets Wagner on Saturday, Oct. 1 at 12:30 p.m. The Big Red will be looking to avenge a 41-7 loss to the Seahawks on Staten Island a year ago, a game that served as the first game at Cornell under Austin.