WORCESTER, Mass. – Holy Cross took out seven years of football frustration here Saturday in a 31-10 decision over Colgate.
The Crusaders (4-4, 2-0 Patriot) won for the first time in this series since 2011 by finding success both on the ground and through the air.
Holy Cross tailback Domenic Cozier rushed for 105 yards in the opening quarter alone as the Crusaders broke on top 7-0. Then quarterback Connor Degenhardt heated up in the second quarter, passing for 154 yards and two TDs to hand the hosts a 21-3 lead at halftime.
Cozier finished with a season-high 153 rushing yards, while Degenhardt capped his day at 267 yards on just 11 completions. The Crusaders quarterback connected on consecutive TD passes of 31, 13 and 58 yards over a 10-minute stretch of the second and third quarters.
The Raiders (1-8, 0-3) were held out of the end zone until late in the game, when
Grant Breneman found
Garrett Oakey for a 24-yard touchdown completion. It was Oakey's first collegiate TD.
Oakey finished with six receptions for 64 yards, while
Nick Diaco added four for 69 and
Michael Kane three for 57. Breneman finished 19-of-27 for 248 yards and a TD. Two of his pass attempted were tipped and intercepted.
Colgate in the first half was limited to a 38-yard field goal by
Chris Puzzi, his longest of the season.
Nicholas Ioanilli led all tacklers with nine solo stops.
Aidan Gaertner added seven solo tackles, including one that forced a fumble.
Milton Braasch II fought for and came up with the recovery.
Bottom Line
• Holy Cross 31, Colgate 10
From the Source
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Colgate head coach Dan Hunt: (On the game) "Just too many mistakes. We had a couple of turnovers down in their territory; a lot of penalties in their territory. They had some deep balls where they made plays and we had some deep balls where, somehow, it ended up in their hands. They completed only 11 passes, but they were big. And we couldn't string together enough plays in a row without something happening. Whether it was a penalty or a turnover, we were getting in our own way.
"Right now, we're not a good football team. The challenge right now is to get out of disappointed mode because the season didn't go the way we wanted, and get into rebuilding mode of what we're going to do. There's success to be had and it has to start now to keep next year going. That's the challenge.
"The execution is not where it needs to be, and that starts with me. We moved the ball a little better today but the point of offense is to score points, and we're just not doing it."
Stats of the Game
• Kane was a star in the first half for the Raiders, posting three catches for a combined 57 yards.
• Puzzi is now 27-of-33 on field goals for his career, an .818 success rate.
• Breneman's 248 passing yards were a season-high. Today's yards pushed the junior into the Colgate career top 10 at 4,370, eclipsing Jim Russell (1990-92) at 4,155.
• Next on the list is Damon Phelan (1986-88) at 4,608.
• Holy Cross' 502 yards of total offense marked a season-high against the Raiders.
• The most recent Holy Cross victory over Colgate had been 37-7 in Worcester back in 2011.
• Holy Cross leads the all-time series 41-36-5.
• The 2-0 Crusaders face 3-0 Lehigh next Saturday in Bethlehem.
Gate Grab Bag
• Attendance for Family Day.at Fitton Field was 10,926
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Nick Wheeler and Holy Cross' Max Daurelle both wore No. 69 jerseys Saturday to honor former St. Louis Christian Brothers teammate John Chamberlin, who died Wednesday at age 23.
Up Next
• Colgate stays in Patriot League competition next Saturday at Georgetown.
• The Hoyas lost 27-24 at Lehigh this week on a last-second field goal, dropping to 5-3 overall and 1-2 in the Patriot League.
• Kickoff from Washington is noon, with PLN carrying the livestream. Catch the home play-by-play call from 94 WKXZ-FM.
