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ITHACA, N.Y. ‘ Lane Schwarzberg kicked a 22-yard field goal on the final play of the game to lift undefeated and nationally ranked º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ (5-0) to a 27-24 win over Cornell (1-2) Saturday at Schoellkopf Field.
Junior tailback Jamaal Branch carried 34 times for a career-high 226 yards and two touchdowns as º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ won its 11th straight game ‘ the second longest win streak in school history. The Raiders have defeated Cornell eight straight times and are 16-1 in their last 17 games against Ivy League opponents.
º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ led the contest 24-7 at halftime before Cornell rallied for 14 points in the third quarter. On the Big Red’s first possession of the second half, Cornell marched 69 yards in seven plays to move to within 10 points, 24-14. One minute later, º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ quarterback Chris Brown fumbled, and Cornell’s Sean Nassoiy picked up the ball and raced 38 yards for a TD.
The Big Red tied the contest on A.J. Weitsman’s 24-yard field goal with 6:32 remaining in the contest to cap a 50-yard, nine-play drive.
º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ took possession on its own 12-yard line following the kickoff with 6:30 remaining. The game-winning drive featured an 18-yard pass from Brown to J.B. Gerald to the º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ 41 on third-and-nine, a 25-yard pass from Brown to tight end John Frieser to the Cornell 30 on second-and-five, and seven-yard pass from Brown to Gerald to the Cornell 19 on third-and-six.
Following Gerald’s reception to the 19, º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ ran two more plays before calling timeout with two seconds remaining. Then after two Cornell timeouts in an attempt to ice Schwarzberg, he drilled his game-winning FG through the uprights for the victory.
Cornell took a 7-0 lead with 4:46 left in the first quarter when backup tailback Joshu Johnston broke off left tackle for a 59-yard touchdown run. Weitsman added the conversion. Johnston run was the longest of the season against º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½.
The Raiders answered the early challenge scoring on their next four possessions for a 24-7 lead at halftime.
Branch scored his first TD of the contest on a five-yard run with 43 seconds left in the first quarter to tie the game. Lane Schwarzberg added the extra point as º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ moved 89 yards in 10 plays.
º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ upped its lead to 14-7 lead with 10:59 remaining in the first half, when Branch ran one yard for the score. The Raiders moved 58 yards in eight plays to take the lead for good.
Later in the second quarter, º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ drove 69 yards in nine plays after stopping Cornell on a fourth-and-six at the º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ 31. Defensive tackle Josh Sabo broke up the fourth down pass play.
Nine plays later, quarterback Chris Brown scored on three-yard run to give the Raiders a 21-7 advantage with 3:59 left in the half. º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ moved 69 yards in nine plays with the big play a 49-yard run by Branch.
º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ free safety Ainsworth Minott came up with his second interception of the season with 3:34 left that led to a 28-yard field goal by Schwarzberg with 1:16 remaining.
GAME NOTES: Branch moved into 17th place in career rushing with 1,379 yards ‘ his 226 yards rushing was the most ever by a º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½ back in the 86 game history of the º¬Ð߲ݴ«Ã½-Cornell series ‘ Gerald finished with eight catches for 87, while Graham had six receptions for 51 yards ‘ Graham is now 8th in career receptions with 98 ‘ Frieser had four catches for 74 yards ‘ Ryan Disch had nine tackles and shared a quarterback sack with Josh Sabo. Sabo had three tackles and one big pass breakup.