Box Score (PDF)
 
ITHACA, N.Y. — On a blustery Friday night at Schoellkopf Field, Penn used a big first half to upend Cornell sprint football, 29-12.
 
The Quakers got on the board on their first drive of the game when Henry Mason caught a four yard pass from Mike McCurdy with 10:56 to go in the first quarter.
 
On the ensuing drive, the Big Red got down field thanks to a string of Kevin Nathanson runs. Over three consecutive plays, the junior running back rushed a total of 34 yards. He and junior quarterback Rob Pannullo then teamed up for two more runs to get Cornell within field goal range. Senior Michael Zazzara kicked Cornell's first field goal of the season with 6:53 remaining in the first quarter, a 24-yard kick, to bring the Big Red within four.
 
Penn found the end zone again before the end of the quarter though, to put the Quakers up 14-3.
 
But Cornell once again answered with a field goal with 12:17 remaining in the second quarter, this time from 34 yards out.
 
Penn scored twice more to lead 26-6 at the break. The second half was more of a defensive battle, with the Big Red outscoring the Quakers, 6-3, through the final two quarters. The Cornell defense held Penn to a pair of three-and-outs early in the fourth quarter before the Big Red put together another scoring drive. Nathanson was the key again, making a 2-yard touchdown run and diving over the pile into the end zone. Cornell tried for the two-point conversion but couldn't connect on the pass. The score would hold at 29-12.
 
Senior Benjamin Herrera led the Big Red offense with 87 receiving yards while Nathanson picked up 82 on the ground. Junior Christopher D'Ambrosio posted six solo tackles and three assisted to lead the defense. Freshman Conrad McCarthy picked up a half dozen solo hits, including a sack for a loss of seven yards.
 
Cornell plays its final home game of the season at 7 p.m. next Friday when Princeton travels to Ithaca.