AMBLER, Pa. -- The Cornell sprint football team got within two points in the fourth quarter with the ball and a chance to take the lead, but Chestnut Hill held on for a 16-7 victory on Saturday afternoon at Trojan Stadium. The Big Red slipped to 0-2 (0-2 CSFL), while Chestnut Hill remained unbeaten (2-0, 2-0 CSFL).
Cornell trailed 9-0 before pulling within two points early in the fourth. The Big Red defense then forced a missed field goal to give the offense a chance to take the lead, but a fumble on the ensuing drive set up the Griffins' clinching touchdown.
Sophomore
Kyle Melkonian intercepted a pass on defense and made two key catches on the scoring drive that followed, but the Cornell sprint football team couldn't complete the comeback in a 16-7 loss to Chestnut Hill on Saturday at Trojan Stadium.
Chestnut Hill held the ball for 39:09 and outgained Cornell 270-118. Xavier Limehouse ran for 110 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries to pace the home squad.
Neither team scored in the first quarter before the Griffins broke through midway through the second on a 12-play, 84-yard drive that took 8:51. Griffin Walter's 42-yard pass to Ronnell Wheeler set up first-and-goal at the Cornell 5. Walter then found Deamontae Crosby for a 1-yard touchdown on third down with 5:05 left in the half. Cornell blocked the extra point to keep the deficit at 6-0.
The Big Red answered by driving into Chestnut Hill territory. Melkonian converted a fourth-and-1 with a 9-yard run, and a pass interference penalty moved the ball to the Griffins' 31. Andre Cancellare ended the threat when he intercepted a
Beck Berry pass in the end zone.
Chestnut Hill opened the second half with a nine-play, 56-yard drive that resulted in a Brady Reynolds 35-yard field goal to make it 9-0 with 9:25 left in the third quarter.
Melkonian, who plays both ways, gave Cornell a spark on the Griffins' next possession. He intercepted Walter at the Cornell 20 and returned it 12 yards to the 32. The Big Red then went 68 yards in 13 plays. Berry hit Melkonian for 21 yards on third-and-5. On the final snap of the third quarter, the freshman quarterback found him again for 15 yards on fourth-and-10 to reach the Chestnut Hill 13. On third-and-5, Berry threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to freshman
Carson Ciaio, and senior
Stephen Cisz's extra point made it 9-7 with 13:48 remaining.
Chestnut Hill drove to the Cornell 14 on its next series before freshman
Aaron Gellert sacked Walter for a 14-yard loss. Reynolds then missed a 38-yard field goal wide left with 7:08 to play. Two plays after Cornell took over, Berry fumbled and Riley Stidham recovered for the Griffins at the Cornell 10. Four plays later, Limehouse scored on a 1-yard run on fourth down with 3:37 left. Hunter Oaks intercepted Berry on Cornell's next possession, and Chestnut Hill ran out the clock.
Berry completed 9-of-23 passes for 66 yards with a touchdown with two interceptions. Melkonian had three catches for 34 yards and 22 rushing yards on six carries, while freshman
Jaeden Park caught five passes for 24 yards, and senior
Andrew Lay ran for 36 yards on 10 carries. Defensively, senior
Dan O'Malley posted nine tackles, sophomore
Jason Milo added seven, including one for a loss, and senior
Kruz Meier had six. Cisz averaged 34.5 yards on four punts, with two downed inside the 20.
The Big Red faces first-year CSFL program D'Youville on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 1 p.m. at Schoellkopf Field.
