CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Despite holding nationally ranked Harvard to a season low in yards and points, Cornell fell to the Crimson 34-10 on Friday night at Harvard Stadium on ESPNU, dropping to 0-4 overall and 0-2 in Ivy League play.
Harvard (4-0, 2-0 Ivy) controlled the game from the beginning, scoring on a fumble return on Cornell's first possession. The Crimson extended the lead to 14-0 in the second quarter on a two-yard touchdown catch by Ben Alvarez, capping a 13-play, 52-yard drive.
Harvard added a field goal to start the second half before Cornell finally broke through when junior quarterback
Garrett Bass-Sulpizio finished off a nine-play, 64-yard drive with a one-yard rushing score to cut Harvard's lead to 17-7. The drive was highlighted by a 27-yard catch and run on fourth down by
Johntu Reed, who finished the night with four catches for 45 yards.
Freshman
Jonathan Roost, who was thrust into kicking duties due to injuries, added a 25-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to make it 17-10, but that would be as close as Cornell would get.
Harvard answered with 17 unanswered points, including a 4-yard touchdown run by quarterback Jaden Craig and a 39-yard interception return for a score by Jack Donahoe with 47 seconds remaining to seal the victory.
Bass-Sulpizio went 18-of-30 through the air for 127 yards while carrying the ball 16 times for 30 yards and a touchdown, but was sacked three times and committed two turnovers. Junior tight end
Ryder Kurtz added four receptions for 25 yards.
Defensively, senior
Damon Barnes led Cornell with 12 tackles, while senior linebacker
Joey Cheshire added 11 stops. Junior
Johnny Williamson recorded an interception in the second quarter, which he returned for 27 yards.
Harvard's Xaviah Bascon rushed for 94 yards on 23 carries, while Craig completed 21-of-37 passes for 237 yards and a touchdown. Brady Blackburn was Craig's top target with five catches for 101 yards.
Next Up
Cornell returns to Schoellkopf Field on Saturday, Oct. 18 for its final non-conference game of the season and first of three straight at home when it takes on Bucknell at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.
