ITHACA, N.Y. --- After an 0-6 season last year and almost two years without a victory for Cornell sprint football, the Big Red is back in the win column under its new head coach, Michael Huyghye…on his birthday too.
For this team, the win was one that came from the culmination of the work that was put in during the offseason.
"I've never really seen a team be more committed to changing the culture and switching the trajectory of this entire program over this offseason, " said captain Evan Nicholas. "With the new coaches that we have and new leadership I think we've all been extremely locked in on changing the program."
The win today was not only the first in a while for the Big Red, but at 53 points and a 46 point margin of victory, it was the highest number Cornell has put up in both categories since 2014.
For coach Huygue, the stats weren't all that came out of today's performance.
"You always want to win but even more importantly give them the confidence that the things we are doing are working and the process we are going through is working," said Huyghue. "That was as beneficial as the victory."
Cornell quarterback Max Spero had his first Cornell start and made the most of it going 13-for-20 in the passing game, amounting 153 yards and 1 touchdown on the game. He rushed four times, including two that ended in the endzone, but only net six yards gained on the ground. Evan Nicholas led the Big Red in scoring with a hat trick of touchdowns, including one 21 yard pass from Spero and two rushing touchdowns that combined for a total of 35 yards. Kevin Lopez took the nod at running back and finished the game with 13 carries for a net total of 72 yards and one touchdown. The defensive front of Cornell also stood strong as they had two interceptions (Kruz Meier and Elliot Kim), two sacks (Mike Mosier and Alexei DiDonato) and they both forced and recovered three fumbles.
Molloy's offense struggled starting with quarterback Paulie Drummond, who went 5-for-18, amounting to 113 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. The Lions were held to a net 40 rushing yards and 92 receiving yards. Junior, Peter Von Schoenermarck, was a highlight for Molloy as he had 81 yards receiving and the sole touchdown for the Lions, the first in Molloy sprint football history.
FIRST QUARTER
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With 2:08 left in the first quarter, Nicholas caught a 21 yard pass from Spero and ran into the endzone and Stephen Cisz kicked the ball straight through the uprights on the PAT to put Cornell up 7-0.
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With 1:55 left on the clock, Drummond chucked the ball forward, hoping to get some positive momentum for Molloy's offense. A penalty flag was thrown with the call being intentional grounding which resulted in a safety for Cornell making the score 9-0 at the end of the first quarter.
SECOND QUARTER
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After Molloy's unsuccessful drive led to a punt, Cornell carried their positive momentum into the second quarter. With 12:29 on the clock, Spero kept the ball for a 1 yard rushing touchdown after a quick drive down the field. Cisz then kicked another successful PAT to put Cornell up 16-0.
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After a stretch of punts, with 2:39 left in the half Evan Nicholas broke free of multiple defenders in the red zone and completed a 27 yard rush for a touchdown. The PAT by Cisz was blocked making the score 22-0.
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Shortly after the blocked punt, Cornell came back for revenge which was served by Spero who kept the ball for a one yard rushing touchdown. Cisz's kick was good and the Big Red were up 29-0 with 1:03 left on the clock.
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They were not done yet though, as Cornell made its way back to the endzone with 0:27 left for a touchdown from Nicholas, his third of the day. Cisz hit another PAT to extend the big Red's lead to 36.
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After a quick three and out from Molloy, Cornell was given another shot to get down the field before the end of the half. While they didn't make it to the endzone, Cisz kicked a 15 yard field goal to make the score 39-0 going into halftime.
***Cornell scored 30 points in the second quarter alone.***
THIRD QUARTER
FOURTH QUARTER
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At the start of the fourth quarter Cornell found its way to the endzone one last time with a 1 yard run from Lopez and a PAT made by freshman Logan Clappier as he tallied his first points as a Cornellian. This put Cornell up 53-0.
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With 4:28 left on the clock, Drummond threw a dime to Von Schoenermarck and with that 65 yard pass came the first touchdown in Molloy sprint football history. Timmy Stasko made the kick to make the final score of the evening 53-7.
This victory was a stamp of change for the Big Red program, a change that the athletes and coaches intend to continue.
"This win today is just one example of what we are planning to do with the program and how we are going to change it for this entire season and the seasons going forward, " said Nicholas.
Cornell will be back in action on Friday, Sept. 27 at 1:00 p.m as they take on Navy in Annapolis, MD.
