PRINCE ATHLETIC COMPLEX – In their first meeting since 2012, the University of Rochester football came out on top against the crosstown St. John Fisher University Cardinals by the final score of 28-21 on Saturday afternoon at Edwin Fauver Stadium as part of the University's Meliora Weekend.
 
The win snapped an 11-game losing streak for UR in the series dating back to 2001, and gave Rochester its second 3-0 start in as many years, while the Cardinals dropped to 2-1 with the loss.
 
Despite leading for much of the contest, the Yellowjackets trailed late in the fourth after Fisher scored a pair of touchdowns to go up 21-20.
 
Trailing 20-7 following the Yellowjackets' third touchdown of the game, St. John Fisher answered back with a 13-play, 78-yard touchdown drive to cut the lead to six, and then, after forcing just the second Rochester punt of the day, would go up a point following a 99-yard touchdown drive.
 
Ethan Curtis' 10-yard touchdown pass from Mason Lister capped off Fisher's 78-yard drive to open the fourth, which cut the 'Jackets' lead to 20-14, while Deante Hall bounced off a pile of UR defenders and into the end zone to cap off Fisher's eight-play, 99-yard drive and give the Cardinals a 21-20 advantage with 6:01 to play.
 
Trailing for the first time all game, Rochester got the ball back on their own 25-yard line and quickly moved into St. John Fisher territory. Victor Moran connected with Jeremy Tantalo on 2nd-and-10 to get the drive moving, and after Cole Raux gained seven yards to get Rochester to midfield on the next play, Moran hit Tantalo again, this time for 35 yards to put Rochester in the red zone.
 
A holding penalty backed UR up to the Fisher 25-yard line, but on 2nd-and-10, Aidan Papantonis took Moran's screen pass for 17 yards to bring up 3rd-and-3, and then Tantalo drew a pass interference call in the end zone to put the 'Jackets on the goal line.
 
St. John Fisher twice stopped UR for no gain, calling their second and final timeouts in between to stop the clock, but on 3rd-and-goal, Moran hit Papantonis on a fade in the left corner of the end zone to retake the lead.
 
Moran then connected with Tantalo on the two-point conversion to put Rochester up seven, 28-21, and the Cardinals would take over with just 2:33 left and without a timeout.
 
A muffed kick forced the Cardinals to start from their own eight-yard line, but St. Fisher quickly moved out to midfield with gains of 12 by Lister on the ground and a 13-yard reception by Jackson Cusack.
 
The Cardinals converted a 3rd-and-three with a 10-yard pass from Lister to Vincenzi and marched into Rochester territory with under a minute to play on another 11-yard rush by Lister.
 
Three-straight incompletions brought up 4th-and-10 from the Rochester 33-yard line, but Lister found Jaylen Brantley for a 17-yard reception, just out of the reach of the UR defender. 16 yards away from the end zone, though, Rochester's defense came through with a stop, pressuring Lister on 2nd-and-10, before forcing incompletions on third and fourth down.
 
With 10 seconds left and the game on the line, Lister targeted Brantley in the end zone, but Jake Mason knocked the ball away, securing the 28-21 victory.
 
Neither team got its offense into a groove on its opening series, as Rochester went three-and-out after receiving the opening kick, while St. John Fisher punted from the Yellowjacket 38-yard line.
 
On its second drive, though, URochester got going, starting with a nine-yard run from Papantonis on a jet sweep. A play later, Raux rumbled ahead for 18 yards, while three more carries from the sophomore brought Rochester into St. John Fisher territory.
 
The Yellowjackets would drive into the red zone, but on 3rd-and-12 from the 13-yard line, Moran saw his pass tipped and intercepted, preventing Rochester from putting points on the board.
 
But after another Fisher punt, Rochester took over on the Cardinals' 43-yard line and quickly took the lead with a seven-play, 43-yard drive. Back-to-back passes from Shawn Bellenger to Tyler Robinson and Ryan Van Diver sent UR into the second quarter, while Jake Adelmann picked up 13 yards over the next three plays.
 
Then after Bellenger hit Van Diver for another five yards, Raux rushed for a 14-yard score, giving UR a 7-0 advantage.
 
Rochester's defense then forced another punt, and the 'Jackets would score again, this time on a 15-yard pass from Bellenger to Tantalo, after Jay Zheng burst through for a 27-yard rush on 3rd-and-three.
 
The Cardinals would block Kyle Brainard's extra point though, giving Rochester a 13-0 lead, and Fisher would get on the scoreboard on its ensuing drive. Starting from their own 20, St. John Fisher put together a 13-play, 65-yard scoring drive, picking up a trio of third downs en route to an 11-yard touchdown pass from Lister to Curtis to cut Rochester's lead to 13-7 at the halftime break.
 
St. John Fisher got the ball to start the second half, but a big sack on 2nd-and-nine from A.J. Bicksler and Victor Little slowed the Cardinals' drive and forced a punt just inside UR territory.
 
The Yellowjackets then responded with another scoring drive of their own, with a 13-play, 86-yard touchdown drive that covered nearly seven minutes, starting from their own 14-yard line.
 
Rushes by Raux and Jett Genovese got Rochester's offense churning, while Moran hit Tantalo and Van Diver before Raux picked up another first down. A Moran rush for 11 yards picked up another first down, after which Bellenger briefly came in and hit Van Diver for another first down to move UR into Fisher territory.
 
Moran connected with Van Diver again on a 12-yard pass to push Rochester just outside the red zone, before the junior found Papantonis for a 17-yard touchdown pass to extend UR's lead to 20-7.
 
Following a pair of Fisher touchdown drives, Rochester marched down for the go-ahead score. And then got its stop, defensively to seal the win, and wrap up an undefeated, non-conference slate for the second-straight year.
 
Offensively, Moran completed 9-of-15 attempts for 115 yards and two touchdowns, while Bellenger passed for 65 yards and one TD, completing all eight of his passes. On the ground, Raux rushed for a team-high 71 yards on 14 carries, notching a score, while Papantonis added four carries for 32 yards.
 
Tantalo was UR's top receiver, catching six passes for 82 yards and a score, while Van Diver caught five receptions for 32 yards. Papantonis also caught three passes for 36 yards, two of which went for scores.
 
Defensively, Braydon Felsinger had a game-high 13 tackles, while Little added eight tackles, two sacks and 2.5 tackles for a loss. Jack Diggins, Mason and Brendan McDonald each broke up a pass, while Darian Parker added a quarterback hit.
 
Brainard went 2-for-3 on his extra-point attempts, and punted just twice for 89 yards, landing one inside the 20 and averaging 44.5 yards per punt.
 
As a team, Rochester gained 351 yards, averaging 6.3 yards per play, while Fisher totaled 414 yards, averaging 5.6 yards per play. Both teams converted seven third downs, with Fisher getting three stops on third down, while UR got seven.
 
The Yellowjackets will take their undefeated record into conference play on Saturday, Sept. 27, when they travel to Troy, NY, to open Liberty League play against RPI at 12:00 p.m.