Oct. 6, 2006

Box Score

ITHACA, N.Y. - The Navy sprint football team dropped its CSFL opener with a 16-10 setback in overtime at Cornell on Friday night at Schoellkopf Field. The Big Red improved to 3-0, 1-0 in the league, while the Midshipmen dropped to 2-1 on the year, 0-1 in league play.

Cornell snapped Navy's 15-game winning streak entering the night, dating back to the start of the 2004 season. Navy's last loss came at Army on Nov. 7, 2003, in a 30-25 decision.

"Our guys played hard, but we played a very good football team that made plays when it needed to," stated Navy head coach Maj. Joseph Clearfield, USMC. "I know this team. We have hit some adversity, but I am looking forward to see how we respond with our final-three games of the year."

With Navy leading 10-3 with 3:32 remaining in regulation, Cornell marched 80 yards in 11 plays, capped by a Michael Fullowan two-yard touchdown run, to tie the game and force overtime with 56 seconds showing on the clock. The Big Red kept its chances alive with a 33-yard pass from Zak Dentes to Jason Remillard on a 4th-and-13 with less than two minutes to go on Navy's 42-yardline.

In overtime, Navy was unable to connect on its four pass attempts and turned the ball over on downs. The Big Red immediately took advantage, as Dentes delivered a 25-yard touchdown strike to Michael Brennan to give Cornell its first victory over the Mids since 1998.

Navy rallied from a 3-0 halftime deficit to take a 10-3 lead after three quarters of play. The Midshipmen took a 7-3 lead less than five minutes into the second half on sophomore D.J. Green's (Indianapolis, Ind.) one-yard quarterback sneak into the endzone. Navy had a short field to navigate on that drive, only 34 yards on six plays, due to senior Danny Davis' (Phoenix, Ariz.) third-career interception and the first of 2006.

The Mids extended the lead to 10-3 on freshman David Reifenberg's (Ft. Wayne, Ind.) 22-yard field goal with 1:49 remaining in the third quarter.

Navy had an opportunity to extend its lead to two scores halfway through the fourth quarter, but Reifenberg's 28-yard field goal attempt was blocked by John Samuel.

The Midshipmen held the ball for 14 more minutes than Cornell (37:00-23:00) and ran 77 offensive plays compared to Cornell's 56 plays. However, the Big Red held a slight advantage in total yardage, 298-280. Navy was also flagged for 11 penalties, resulting in a loss of 104 yards.

Junior running back Richard Engel (Medford, N.J.) churned out 86 yards on 25 carries to lead Navy's rushing attack. Freshman Nate Stewart (Fitzgerald, Ga.) contributed 34 yards on seven rushing attempts, while sophomore Enrique Harris (Crawfordville, Fla.) chipped in with five rushes for 33 yards.

Green came off the bench to complete nine of his 18 pass attempts for 94 yards with an interception. Senior Chris Marsh (New Alexandria, Pa.) connected on four of his 11 attempts for 39 yards with two interceptions before leaving the game in the second quarter.

Senior A.J. Storrs (Cincinnati, Ohio) and sophomore Tommy Tellson (Bedford, Texas) each caught four passes, while seniors Ryan Kelly (Annapolis, Md.) and Travis Chambers (Houston, Texas) each made a pair of receptions.

Making his first career start, freshman Tyler Hawkins (Canyon Country, Calif.) led the team with 14 tackles, two of which were for a loss, one sack and forced a fumble. Senior Marcus Walters (Richardson, Texas) made seven stops and swatted away two passes in the loss.

Friday's setback also halted Navy's 38-game winning streak when holding the opposition under 20 points. The Midshipmen last loss while limiting an opponent to 20 or fewer points came on Oct. 23, 1998, in a 17-14 decision against Penn.

Navy will return to action with its final road game of the season on Friday, Oct. 20, at Princeton. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.