UTICA, NY - The Utica University football team will welcome the SUNY Morrisville Mustangs to Charles A. Gaetano Stadium on Saturday for the Gilroy Kernan & Gilroy, Strategic Financial, and Sullivan Contracting Breast Cancer Awareness Game. Kickoff is set for noon.
Follow Along: Those unable to attend can keep up with live video and/or stats through
https://portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/.
Last Time Out: The team suffered its first loss of the 2023 season last Saturday afternoon with a 56-3 defeat to the No. 17 SUNY Cortland Red Dragons. Under center,
Brett Fuller (Port Jervis, NY/Port Jervis) completed 10 of 28 passing attempts for 69 yards. For the Red Dragons, Zac Boyes completed 12 of his 15 attempts for 182 yards and a pair of touchdowns. On the ground,
Jimmy Polito (Hull, MA/Hull) totaled 37 yards on nine carries while Fuller and
Ethan Licin (North Babylon, NY/Luhi) had 17 yards rushing each. Jaden AlfanoStJohn led Cortland with 105 yards and two scores on 14 touches. Ashton Capone added 88 yards and two scores as well while Boyes scrambled for 86 yards and a touchdown. Utica's receivers were led by
Antonio Cianfarani (Scotia, NY/Scotia Glenville), who totaled 24 yards on three catches, and
Joey Nare (Canajoharie, NY/Canajoharie), who caught two passes for 16 yards. Andrew Tarpey and JJ Laap of Cortland combined for seven catches for over 130 yards and two touchdowns - both of which reeled in by Laap. On defense,
Eli Douglas (Ausable Forks, NY/Ausable Valley) netted 15 tackles, six solo, as well as 0.5 tackles for a loss.
Aedan McDonald (Huntington, NY/Huntington) and
Nick Billand (Towaco, NJ/Montville) totaled eight each.
Anthony Fasano (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park) and
Jordyn Davis (Hempstead, NY/Uniondale) forced one fumble apiece with Davis recovering one. The Pioneers' lone scoring drive came in the 3rd quarter off the foot of
Corey Lichtman (Bellmore, NY/Mepham), who converted a 39 yard field goal try. Lichtman's field goal capped off a 16 play, 53 yard drive that took 7:13 to complete. For Cortland, the 17th ranked team in the nation found the end zone twice in the 1st quarter on a 17 yard reception by Laap at 9:30 and a two yard run by Capone with 3:10 to play in the frame. The hosts tacked on 28 more points in the 2nd quarter, three of which on offense and another on a fumble recovery in the end zone, the lead 42-0 entering halftime. The Red Dragons started the half with the ball and pushed their lead to 49-0 on the opening drive with a 34 yard rush by AlfanoStJohn to go up 49-0. Utica went on to put together a 16 play drive that resulted in Lichtman's converted 39 yard attempt. Cortland added seven more points early in the 4th quarter on AlfanoStJohn's second rushing touchdown of the game to put a close to the contest and hand Utica its first loss of 2023.
Getting In: For those attending, tickets will be $5 for adults and $2 for students with a valid ID
Game Sponsors: Gilroy Kernan & Gilroy, Strategic Financial, and Sullivan Contracting will be the proud presenting sponsors of Saturday's game. Inside of the game program will be a QR code to donate to the American Cancer Society. Every dollar raised by Men Wear Pink Ambassadors helps the American Cancer Society save lives from breast cancer by funding innovative breast cancer research; providing education and guidance to help people reduce their risk; and offering comprehensive patient support to those who need it most so no one faces breast cancer alone.
Where We Stand: Despite Utica's strong 5-1 start, the team currently sits fourth in the Empire 8 Conference through two league games. The Pioneers' offense has put up big numbers this season, ranking second in the conference in yards from scrimmage per game with an average of 346.5. The team is putting up 29.2 points per game with an offense led by
Brett Fuller (Port Jervis, NY/Port Jervis), who has thrown for nine touchdowns. Utica's defense was solid through the first five games as well. The trio of linebackers
Anthony Fasano (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park),
Anthony Novello (Mepham, NY/Mepham), and
Doug Simmons (White Plains, NY/Archbishop Stepinac) all rank top-20 in the conference in tackles. Four Empire 8 bouts await the Pioneers where they will look to leap up in the conference rankings in these crucial matchups. A victory in week seven vs Morrisville will secure Utica its eighth winning season in program history, the seventh in head coach
Blaise Faggiano's tenure, and will make the team bowl eligible.
Eli The Guy: Eli Douglas (Ausable Forks, NY/Ausable Valley) was a bright spot for the Pioneers defense on Saturday vs Cortland. The sophomore defensive back was all over the field leading the defense with 15 tackles including one tackle for a loss. Douglas was also featured on the special teams unit making plays as well. His 15 tackle effort was a career high and upped his total on the season to 38 which is second on the team. Douglas has really blossomed into a star on defense in his first full year as a starter. Along with his 38 tackles, Douglas has broken up two passes and snagged an interception. He will look to build on his strong sophomore campaign this week vs Morrisville.
About Morrisville: The Mustangs are 2-4 overall and 0-2 in Empire 8 while currently on a two-game losing skid. In Morrisville's most recent game against Alfred University on October 7, they lost a close game, 14-10. Steven Frerichs, senior quarterback for the Mustangs, leads the team in rushing attempts with 80 and has found the end zone five times on the ground. His dual threat ability is a major component to the offense as he accounts for 1,516 yards out of the 1,903 total offensive yards for Morrisville. So far this season the Mustangs defense has let up 1,191 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. In 2022, the team only allowed 1,334 rushing yards and 3.9 yards per carry in 11 games. Morrisville had a key departure from the defense. Ernesto Mitchell, all-conference linebacker who was the Co-Defensive Player of the Year in 2022 who had 16 tackles in the game against Utica last year. Utica and Morrisville are 4-4 all-time against one another while the Pioneers have taken the last two matchups.
Up Next: Utica will head to Alfred University on October 21 to take on the Saxons at noon.
