The St. John Fisher College football team jumped out to a 35-0 halftime-lead and
cruised to a 56-13 win over host Hartwick College on Saturday in the regular-season finale for both teams.With the win, Fisher improves to 6-3 overall and 4-1 in the Empire 8 Conference, giving the Cardinals a share of the Empire 8 title for the fourth time in the last six years. The win also marked the 100th win at Fisher for head coach Paul Vosburgh, who ranks as the program’s winningest coach in his 19-year career.
Senior
Brad Carlton rushed for 153 yards on 22 carries and scored four touchdowns (all career-highs), while quarterback
Tim Bailey went 15-for-22 for 326 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. As a team, Fisher racked up exactly 600 yards of total offense and accumulated 30 first downs.
Paul Deckard snagged five passes for 116 yards and scored on a career-long 74 yard pass midway through the second quarter, giving the Cardinals a 21-0 lead.
Ryan Francis scored on a 54-yard pass and finished with three catches for 37 yards.
Senior tight end
Jeff Same scored on a 15-yard pass, the first touchdown of his career, to start a 28-point second quarter.
Freshman running back
Tony DeChario closed out the scoring with a five-yard touchdown run.
Fisher will find out on Sunday afternoon if it earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division III Championship (Alfred will receive the Empire 8’s automatic bid, due to its 3-point win over Fisher on October 24th). If the Cardinals don’t go to NCAAs, they will most likely host an ECAC Bowl Championship. Fisher has advanced to the postseason each of the last six years.