ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell defense held Penn at bay nearly all night, but the Quakers broke out in the second half for a 17-0 win on Friday evening at Schoellkopf Field. The Quakers improved to 3-2, while the Big Red fell to 0-4.

The Big Red trailed just 3-0 at halftime and 10-0 into the final four minutes, but could not find the end zone. Evan Nicholas posted nine tackles with an interception and two pass breakups, while Cooper Wise made seven stops with 2.5 sacks. Zac McPherson also registered eight tackles. 

Ralph Fleuranvil rushed 16 times for 89 yards and Xavier Martinez connected on 12-of-25 passes for 100 yards - including three completions for 52 yards to Colin Boyle. The Big Red posted just nine first downs and had 163 yards of offense against a Penn defense that had five sacks. Travis Legum notched six tackles with 3.5 sacks and a forced fumble in the win for the Quakers.

Offensively, Andrew Paolini threw and rushed for a touchdown and notched 242 yards of total offense.
 
The Big Red defense limited Penn to 140 first half yards and a 33-yard field goal by Montemayor late in the second quarter to take a 3-0 lead into the break. It stayed that way until late in the first quarter when Paolini capped a 13-play, 50-yard drive with a 1-yard dive. That came only after Cornell twice stopped the Quakers from the 1. 

Cornell's 12-play, 54-yard drive looking to put points on the board ended early in the fourth quarter when Spencer Katz's 28-yard field goal was blocked. Penn then milked the clock, as its 15-play, 53-yard drive took 8:35 to complete. When it was over, there was just 3:26 remaining. The Big Red promptly went three-and-out, and Penn added an insurance touchdown with 2:12 left.

Cornell will play its final home game on Friday, Oct. 21 at 7 p.m. when Chestnut Hill visits Schoellkopf Field for Senior Day. The contest will be broadcast on ESPN+.