Sep 24, 2016
BUFFALO, N.Y.— Stephen Johnson (Buffalo/McKinley) caught four passes for 147 yards and a touchdown and the Buffalo State defensed produced a pair of second-half interceptions in a 40-24 homecoming victory over Morrisville State in an Empire 8 game today at Coyer Field.
THE BASICS
FINAL SCORE: Buffalo State – 40, Morrisville State - 24
LOCATION: Coyer Field, Buffalo, N.Y.
RECORDS: Buffalo State (2-1/1-1), Morrisville State (0-3/0-2)
INSIDE THE BENGAL BOX SCORE
- Quarterback Aaron Ertel (Depew/Depew) finished 15 of 28 for 255 yards and two touchdowns.
- Tre Jones (Rochester/Greece-Athena) led the Bengals on the ground with 91 yards on just eight carries, while Dale Stewart (Niagara Falls/Niagara Falls) had 65 yards on 13 attempts.
- Darren Thompson (Buffalo/St. Joe's) led Buffalo State's defense with 14 tackles, and Bart Mazzara (Lockport/Starpoint) had 10.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Buffalo State finished with 474 yards of total offense, compared to 394 by the Mustangs, and produced a pair of key turnovers.
- Buffalo State needed just three plays to open the scoring with a 17-yard run by Stewart which was set up by a 57-yard pass from Ertel to Johnson.
- The Bengals pushed the advantage to 10-0 on a 30-yard field goal by Marc Montana (E. Amherst/St. Joe's) on the first possession of the second quarter.
- After another Morrisville punt, Buffalo State scored on its first play of the ensuing possession with a 66-yard strike from Ertel to Johnson down the left sideline.
- Montana added a 22-yard field goal to push the lead to 20-0 1:57 remaining in the half, before Morrisville scored the final points of the opening half on a 28-yard field goal by Jeff Groth that was partially blocked as time expired.
- After a pair of punts to open the second half, Ish Height (Brooklyn/Grand St. Campus) extended the Bengals' lead to 27-3 when he intercepted a Cory Benedetto pass and returned it 46 yards for the score.
- After a quarterback change, Morrisville answered with 21-unanswered points with Brandon Gwinner under center, however, to cut the deficit to just three.
- Nick Edmund got the rally started with a 29-yard scoring run.
- After a blocked field goal, Morrisville drove back down the field and found the end zone again with a 3-yard run by Edmond on the final play of the third quarter.
- Then, with 8:47 remaining, scored again on a 27-yard pass from Gwinner to Joseph Faniel.
- Buffalo State assembled an eight-play, 65-yard scoring drive capped by a Nick Jones (Buffalo/W. Seneca West) 9-yard reception in the back of the end zone to restore the two-score lead.
- Brett Ellers (Wantagh/MacArthur) picked off Gwinner on the ensuing possession and returned it deep into Morrisville territory to seal the win for the Bengals.
- Antoine Holloman (Brooklyn/Abraham Lincoln) completed the scoring with a 1-yard plunge with 1:17 remaining.
FOR THE FOES
- Gwinner was 12 of 25 for 175 yards with a touchdown and an interception in relief of Benedetto who finished 15 of 30 for 115 yards with a pick-6.
- Marcus Jackson-Conner reeled in 14 catches for 172 yards before leaving with an apparent injury in the fourth quarter.
- Edmond finished with 57 yards and two scores on 12 carries.
- Kendall Clarke led the Mustangs on defense with 10 tackles including one for loss.
UP NEXT
Buffalo State will play its first road game of the season next Saturday at St. John Fisher. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.