Football drops 49-12 decision to Hartwick

ONEONTA, NY - The lethal combination of quarterback Jason Boltus (Baldwinsville, NY) and wide receiver Jack Phelan (Slingerlands, NY) proved its worth Saturday as the duo hooked up for four touchdowns in a 49-12 win over Becker. The Hawks have now won three straight games and 11 straight at Wright Stadium. The Becker Hawks slip to 2-4.

'Wick would gain 560 total yards of offense including 361 passing yards from Boltus on the fifth ranked passing defense in the country entering the game. With the score 14-6 Hartwick with under five seconds to play in the first half, Boltus connected with Phelan on a 1-yard touchdown pass to the corner of the end zone to extend their lead to 21-6 at the break, and 'Wick cruised in the second half outscoring the visitors 28-6.

Boltus and Phelan hooked up twice in the opening quarter to give Hartwick a 14-0 lead. The first was a picture-perfect 49-yarder with 11:48 left and the second on a 15-yard pass with 84 seconds remaining in the quarter. After Becker's Jacques Faublas caught a 12-yard touchdown throw from quarterback Gabriel Prophet, reigning Empire 8 and ECAC Northwest Player of the Week, Ben Tomaino (Oneonta, NY) blocked the extra point to leave the game at 14-6. In the second half, Boltus hit Phelan in the end zone after just 3:12 on a 14-yard pass and Ryan Boyea (Scotch Plains, NJ) hit his 3rd of seven extra points on the day to make it 28-6 'Wick.

Becker would put its last points on the board just inside the fourth quarter on a Paul Casimir 11-yard run. The Hawks' extra point was wide left. Hartwick wasted little time getting seven points back as Boltus found Noah Koreman (Albany, NY) for a five-yard touchdown to cap a five-play, 53-yard drive. Sophomore Nate Rockefeller (Delhi, NY) set up the play with a big 35-yard run on the drive. Rockefeller's two-yard run and subsequent Boyea kick five minutes later gave 'Wick a 42-12 lead, and senior linebacker Corey Rolling (Uniondale, NY) capped the day with a 58-yard interception return for a touchdown with just over three minutes left.

Rockefeller ended up gaining 78 yards on the ground for Hartwick while Tosh DeMulder (Undailla, NY) added 74 yards. Boltus' five touchdowns is his highest total since opening the season with seven against Western New England. Koreman finished the game with seven catches for 90 yards and Dan Gill (Massapequa, NY) caught six balls for 68 yards. Phelan gained 79 receiving yards in addition to his four trips to the house and sophomore Ryan Mosack (Oneida, NY) caught three passes for a season-high 56 yards.

On the defensive end, standouts Dan Contrastano (Hastings, NY) and Tomaino each had 10 tackles to lead the team. Tomaino added a six-yard sack, Brett Radley (Dolgeville, NY) recorded two tackles for a loss of seven yards, and Joseph D'Alessandro (Niskayuna, NY) intercepted a pass and recovered a fumble. Becker's Faublas caught seven passes for 110 yards in the game. Running back Jimmy Chery gained 67 yards rushing.

Hartwick hits the road next weekend for a game with Mount Ida in Newton, MA at 1 p.m.