NEWTON CENTRE, MA - Same story, different day. Hartwick's Jason Boltus (Baldwinsville, NY) tied for the most yards thrown in an NCAA game this season with 508 and added six touchdowns, and Jack Phelan (Slingerlands, NY) made 14 catches for an NCAA-high 311 yards in a 58-27 drubbing of Mount Ida on Saturday in Newton Centre, MA. The Hawks, who gained a season-high 612 yards of offense in the game, have now won four straight games and improve to 5-1 on the season. The Mustangs fall to 2-5.
The Hawks jumped out to a 21-0 lead on their hosts before Mount Ida would outscore the Hawks 21-14 in the second quarter to make the game interesting. The Hawks would put the game out of reach with 20 unanswered points in the second half. The defense got things rolling for the Hawks in the early going as linebacker Chad Cassidy (Troy, NY) recovered a Mustang botched snap on a punt and went five yards for the touchdown 2:26 into the game for a 6-0 Hawk lead. After a Ryan Boyea (Scotch Plains, NJ) extra point, the Hawks got the ball back again quickly as linebacker Zack Kerzner (Sayville, NY) recovered the second Mount Ida fumble in the opening four minutes. The Hawks were stopped on a fourth and six on the ensuing drive, but Mount Ida was forced to punt on its next possession, and Boltus and Phelan would capitalize on a 21-yard touchdown play to extend the advantage to 14 points.
The Hartwick defense forced another Mustang punt on their next possession and Boltus hit Max Meisel (Weston, CT) for his first touchdown reception at 'Wick on a 10-yarder to cap a 5-play, 67-yard drive with just six seconds left in the first. After the Mustangs drove 76 yards in 2:21 to get their first points of the game on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Tony Tokarz to Kyle Watkins, the Hawks marched right back down the field to get the points right back. Boltus hooked up with tight end Keith Geraldsen (Ravena, NY) for a 50-yard play and then found Phelan for 25 yards and the touchdown just 52 seconds after the Mount Ida score.
Fifty seconds after Phelan's second score, Mount Ida made it a 28-14 game as Tokarz found Watkins again for a 68-yard trip to the end zone, but again Hartwick would answer after just two minutes as Boltus completed a 37-yard pass to Phelan and another for 22 yards resulting in the third touchdown between the tandem with 8:16 left in the half making it 35-14. The Mustangs would get one more score in before the final horn of the half on a Tokarz two-yard keeper to cut the deficit to 14 points.
After both teams came away empty on their opening second-half drives, a Boltus 5-yard rush and Boyea kick gave the Hawks a 42-21 lead, and later in the quarter Phelan took a 32-yard pass from Boltus to the house for their fourth touchdown connection of the game to make it 48-21. Early in the fourth, Boltus would find sophomore Dan Gill (Massapequa, NY) for his second touchdown reception of the season making it a 34-point 'Wick lead. Mount Ida would add another six later in the quarter before Boyea booted a 25-yard field goal to end the game's scoring at 58-27.
Boltus' 508 passing yards ties him with Augsburg's Jordan Berg for the highest single-game total in Division III football this season. His six touchdown passes gives him 26 for the season and 114 for his career which is just two shy of tying the all-time Hartwick record. Phelan's 311 receiving yards on the day is the highest single-game total in the country this season, breaking his own record of 289. The senior now has three of the five top yardage totals in the nation.
Tokarz threw for 240 yards and three touchdowns for the Mustangs. Watkins caught seven balls for 139 yards and two scores. Defensively, Mount Ida's Theo McCummings made nine tackles including a 19-yard sack on Boltus. For Hartwick, lineman Ben Tomaino (Oneonta, NY), and defensive backs Justin Oelgeschlager (Highland, NY), and Nick Gonzalez (Somers, NY) each recorded six tackles.
The Hawks get back to Empire 8 play next weekend against Norwich. 'Wick hosts the Cadets at 2 p.m. on Saturday at Wright Stadium.
