TROY, N.Y. — The RPI football team opened Liberty League play with a 33-7 victory over Hobart College this afternoon at East Campus Stadium. The Engineers held the Statesmen scoreless through the first three quarters while forcing three turnovers and rushing for 201 yards to improve to 2-2 overall.
After a scoreless opening quarter, RPI broke through early in the second.
Kayden White broke free for a 37-yard run to move the Engineers into Hobart territory before
Justin McCormack connected with
Josh Young for a 46-yard touchdown, giving RPI a 7-0 advantage.
The Engineers' defense created another scoring opportunity late in the half when
Joe Dechiaro intercepted Jeremy Weiss at the Hobart 28-yard line. RPI moved inside the red zone on the ensuing possession before
Kevin Lukash connected on a 28-yard field goal as time expired, sending the Engineers into halftime with a 10-0 lead.
RPI continued to capitalize on defensive stops after the break. Hobart turned the ball over on downs on its opening possession of the third quarter, allowing the Engineers to take over at the Statesmen 29. RPI advanced to the 11-yard line before Lukash converted his second 28-yard field goal of the afternoon to extend the margin to 13-0.
The defense delivered another pivotal play on Hobart's next possession.
P.J. Poknis intercepted Weiss at the RPI 13-yard line and returned the ball 77 yards to the Hobart 10. Two plays later, McCormack scored on a six-yard run to push the Engineers' advantage to 19-0.
RPI forced its third turnover late in the third quarter when
Cooper Simmons sacked Weiss and forced a fumble that
Matt Krauza recovered and returned 16 yards to the Hobart 39. The Engineers turned the takeaway into an 11-play scoring drive that carried into the fourth quarter, converting a fourth-and-eight along the way on a 10-yard completion from McCormack to White. White finished the possession with a three-yard touchdown run to make it 26-0.
Hobart ended the shutout bid with a four-yard touchdown pass from Weiss to Johnny Harding late in the fourth quarter, but RPI answered immediately. On the first play of the ensuing possession, White broke free for a 47-yard touchdown run to account for the final 33-7 margin.
White powered the RPI offense with 192 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 35 carries, averaging 5.5 yards per attempt. He also caught three passes for 30 yards. McCormack completed 14 of 19 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown while adding a rushing score. Young finished with two receptions for 50 yards and a touchdown, while
Chris Ahle caught three passes for 42 yards and
Connor Cruz added three receptions for 29 yards. The Engineers finished with 376 yards of total offense, including 201 on the ground.
Lance Hersh led RPI with seven tackles, while
Luke Lavello,
Griffin Kramer, Dechiaro, Poknis, and
Aaron Meadows each recorded five stops. Simmons totaled three tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack, and a forced fumble. Dechiaro and Poknis each recorded interceptions, while Krauza recovered the third-quarter fumble. The Engineers limited the Statesmen to 4-of-12 on third down and 1-of-3 on fourth down.
