PITTSFORD, NY – The University of Rochester football team scored a touchdown in the final minute of regulation and decided to go for the 2-point conversion and win, but ultimately came up just short in a 14-13 loss at the hands of St. John Fisher University on Saturday afternoon at Growney Stadium.
Quarterback
Shawn Bellenger tossed two touchdown passes in the final period, one to
T.J. Shifflet and one to
Corey Wang to rally the Yellowjackets (1-2) back in the contest.
The score to Wang came with just 30 seconds left in regulation, with a potential PAT up next to tie the game.
Setting up the Yellowjackets in scoring position was a blocked punt by Rochester's
Michael Murray on St. John Fisher's second to last possession. The ball was then scooped up by
Drew Strollo who ran 30 yards on the return to set up the potential game-tying score.
After Bellenger scrambled for ten yards on the first play, a spike stopped the clock. An incomplete pass made it third down before Bellenger hit Wang in the endzone for the touchdown.
The Yellowjackets elected to go for two and the lead, but on the conversion attempt, the St. John Fisher pass rush burst through the line and forced Bellenger into a quick throw which sailed out of the back of the endzone.
Wang caught the late touchdown for URochester.
On the ensuing onside kick attempt, UR's
Kyle Brainard got a good second bounce that shot up into the air, but St. John Fisher's hands team secured the ball, with Justin Maier getting credit for the kickoff recovery.
Rochester, with no timeouts left, saw the Cardinals (3-0) kneel out the clock and hang on for the victory.
The game ended up being a defensive battle with neither team eclipsing 300 yards of offense. Rochester finished with 225 yards on 54 plays, while the Cardinals earned 269 yards on 63 plays. Both teams turned the ball over once in the contest and only five penalties were accepted, three on URochester and two on St. John Fisher.
In what ended up being a low-scoring first half, the Cardinals earned a long offensive drive spanning the first and second quarters. St. John Fisher ended up reaching the Rochester 26-yard line, but a holding penalty on third down brought the Cardinals back out of field goal range, forcing a punt.
UR got out to near midfield on its next possession, but stalled after ten plays. Brainard then got off a great punt that ended up being downed at the St. John Fisher 2-yard line.
A three-and-out by the Yellowjacket defense game UR solid field position, inside of Cardinal territory, but Rochester's offense was done after four plays and turned the ball over on downs.
With just over a minute before halftime, St. John Fisher was able to break through on the scoreboard with a 7-yard touchdown rush from quarterback Ryan Whitney. Whitney did most of the work on the drive for the Cardinals, rushing four times for 17 yards while also completing a pair of 12-yard passes. Logan Laratta's extra point sailed through and St. John Fisher led 7-0.
The Cardinals followed with a long touchdown drive on their first attempt of the second half, doubling the score to 14-0. This time, a Yellowjacket penalty in the endzone setup St. John Fisher at the 2-yard line, with Whitney finding Jackson Cusack for the short TD score. The drive ended up being 11 plays and traveled 75 yards after a touchback on the opening of the third.
URochester looked to get points back on its next possession, break into Cardinal territory inside the 30-yard line. On a second down play, Bellenger lofted a ball towards the endzone, but the Cardinals Colin Clark made a diving interception to thwart the drive.
The Yellowjackets defense stood tall with the Cardinals pinned deep in their one territory, forcing another three-and-out, which led to UR getting the ball back at the Cardinal 35-yard line following the punt.
Rochester made a first down after two plays, but was nearly right back to where they started after a 14-yard sack on a third down play.
On fourth down and 19, the Yellowjackets chose to keep the offense on the field, with Bellenger pinpointing a pass to Shifflet for a 32-yard touchdown score.
Will Ham kicked the extra point and made it a 7-point game, with UR trailing 14-7.
UR saw the Cardinals reach the Yellowjacket 28-yard line on their next possession, but an incomplete pass on fourth down, aided by an
A.J. Bicksler QB hurry, turned the ball back over to Rochester.
The next Rochester drive stalled out, giving way to the Cardinals to attempt to run out the clock. Rochester was able to force the late punt attempt that was block, setting up the final minute touchdown score.
Overall on the day, Bellenger completed 14 of 22 passes for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns with 1 interception. On the ground,
Cole Raux carried 26 times for 87 net yards, with Shifflet finishing as the leading Yellowjacket receiver with three catches for 45 yards and the TD.
On defense,
Braydon Felsinger had 10 tackles and a pass break-up.
Jack Diggins secured eight stops and two QB hurries, while
Gavin Guidette added eight tackles and a pass break-up. Cornerback
Noah Song secured an interception, while
Rhys Lewis and Bicksler each had a sack in the game.
For St. John Fisher, Whitney finished with 166 yards passing, 1 TD and 1 interception, while also rushing 21 times for 50 yards and a score. Marco Morelli added 11 carries for 36 yards for the Cardinals.
Gavin Horton was the leading receiver in the game with seven catches for 70 yards, with Cusack added six receptions for 65 yards and the touchdown.
SJF's Timothy Vanderbrink had nine tackles to lead the defense, while Kyle DaMore had seven. Jack Bierman added a sack for the Cardinals.
Rochester now will shift its attention to Liberty League conference play, with those games starting up next week, as the Yellowjackets travel to Hilbert College for a Saturday contest starting at noon.
