The Orange and Blue come back strong in the fourth quarter to defeat Cornell on Saturday. The Bison played at the Pascucci Family Athletics Complex in front of their home crowd. The 21-10 victory over Cornell was the Bison’s first victory on the season.

The Orange and Blue (1-3, 0-0 PL) scored two unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter to put them on top of Cornell (0-3, 0-1 Ivy). This was the homecoming game for the Bison. The Orange and Blue defense forced four key turnovers, two of which were by Jonathan Searcy ’23 that stopped the Big Red from converting in the red zone. 

Coach Dave Cecchini was very happy with the game and his team. He stated that it was a great environment with the Homecoming atmosphere and was an awesome game to be involved in. Cecchini said the stadium was electric and was very proud of his team for battling back, gaining the lead and then protecting it. He has noticed some genuine progress in the team and gives his players all of the credit for coming out with the win.

Quarterback Nick Semtimphelter ’24 conducted the Orange and Blue’s final scoring drive, which consisted of 10 plays covering 78 yards. The drive was capped by a touchdown throw to Christian Spugnardi ’25.

The turnovers that the Bison defense forced put their offense in great field positions throughout the game. Searcy had two massive turnovers near the goal line to stop the Big Red from coming back. Coach Cecchini was proud of the defensive performance and said that this is what the team has been needing. 

Coach Cecchini feels that this win will give the team a little bit more confidence and maybe even a little bit more swagger. This is the first step for the young Orange and Blue team who is still building to become a championship-caliber football team. Cecchini believed that the team could get there if they continued to work very hard.

Captain Dom Lyles ’22 explained how proud he was of the team and their win. “[We] went out there and played for each other, and made the big plays when they were needed most. It was a hard-fought, great team win and with our team being such a young team, each of our wins will only increase our team’s confidence. Proud of my team, and we are going to try to ride this momentum going into Lafayette this weekend,” Lyles said.

The Bison are heading on the road to Easton, Pennsylvania to face the Lafayette Leopards this Saturday, Oct. 9. They look to grab another win, but this time in Patriot League play.