TROY, N.Y. — The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) football team came within a play of knocking off Liberty League rival Ithaca College this afternoon in East Campus Stadium, falling 24–23 in a thriller that featured three lead changes, an 80-yard touchdown run, and a blocked punt returned for a score.

RPI wasted no time electrifying the home crowd as running back Kayden White took his second carry 80 yards up the middle for a touchdown just 68 seconds into the game. The Engineers' defense followed with a first-quarter stop that forced a missed field goal, and Aleks Maric extended the lead to 10–7 midway through the second quarter with a 34-yard field goal after a nine-play, 33-yard drive.

Ithaca answered with a late second-quarter touchdown to tie the game at 7–7, then added a short field goal in the third to go ahead 10–10. RPI responded with a physical, methodical march as Anthony DeMatteo directed a 10-play, 58-yard drive capped by a one-yard plunge from White, his second touchdown of the day, giving the Engineers a 17–10 lead entering the fourth.

The Bombers struck quickly in the final quarter, connecting on a 46-yard touchdown pass to even the score at 17–17, then went ahead on a 19-yard strike from quarterback Michael Reed with just over six minutes remaining. Trailing by a touchdown, RPI's special teams swung momentum again when Luke Lavello burst through the line to block a punt and RJ Encarnacion scooped the loose ball at the 11-yard line, returning it for a touchdown with 1:53 left. The Engineers' two-point conversion attempt to take the lead fell short, and Ithaca managed to withstand a final Engineers' possession in the closing seconds.

White finished with 165 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries, averaging nearly nine yards per attempt. DeMatteo added 92 yards through the air on 13 completions. Defensively, Miles Lafferty led all players with 14 tackles, including two for loss and one sack, while Gianluca Santarelli, Griffin Kramer, Patrick O'Keefe, and Cylan Terrelonge each added sacks as RPI recorded four on the day.

RPI will look to get back on track in next Saturday's Dutchman Shoes Trophy game at crosstown rival Union. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 pm in Schenectady.