Bucknell University
Hofstra
Bucknell Football Drops 45-31 Shootout with Hofstra
10/11/2008 8:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 11, 2008
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Bucknell-Hofstra Highlights
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Brock Jackolski carried nine times for 170 yards and three touchdowns, and quarterback Cory Christopher ran for two scores and threw for another to lead Hofstra to a 45-31 victory over Bucknell on a picturesque football Saturday at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
Bison quarterback Marcello Trigg competed 11 of 16 passes for 119 yards and a touchdown, while Andrew Lair came on after Trigg went out with a sprained ankle and ran for a career-high 78 yards and a two touchdowns on 13 carries. It was the first two-touchdown game of his career.
Both teams moved the ball well offensively for most of the day. Hofstra (3-3), bouncing back from a 56-0 drubbing at the hands of No. 1 James Madison a week earlier, finished with 467 total yards, 319 coming on the ground. Bucknell (3-2) collected 24 first downs, the same number as the Pride, and finished with 348 total yards, including 229 rushing. The Bison were hampered by three turnovers, however, including a rare Trigg interception near the Hofstra goal line on the first possession of the day.
Trigg, who had thrown only one interception on 85 pass attempts coming in, marched the Bison into the red zone on the opening series, but Nick Altomare picked him off at the 3-yard line.
Four plays later, Jackolski broke loose for a 78-yard touchdown run on his first carry of the day to give Hofstra a quick lead. Jackolski also had TD runs of 31 and 29 yards, as the Pride scored on five of six first-half possessions en route to a 31-17 lead at halftime.
Bucknell got right back in it after the half, turning Hofstra's first two punts of the day into scores. Freshman Drew Orth kicked his first collegiate field goal, a 38-yarder, to cap a 17-play, 58-yard drive that chewed 8:05 off the clock. After another defensive stop, a 21-yard run by Lair and a 29-yard option scamper by Josh Lee moved the Bison back into Hofstra territory, and Lair finished off the 10-play, 88-yard drive with a 5-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Its lead now trimmed to 31-24, Hofstra responded with an efficient 8-play, 68-yard drive, needing only 2:50 to go back up by two touchdowns. After Justine Buries ran 15 yards to the Bucknell 2, Christopher took it in on the next play to make it 38-24.
Luke Bonus recovered an A.J. Kizekai fumble on Bucknell's next offensive play, and three downs later Christopher hit Phil Riley on a 5-yard touchdown pass to give Hofstra a commanding 45-24 cushion.
Trigg came back in the game and threw a 19-yard pass to Cale Cadman at the Hofstra 4-yard line, then Lair ran it in from there to make it 45-31 with 1:40 left.
Bucknell answered Jackolski's opening touchdown with Ryan Smith's six-yard touchdown grab to even the game at 7 in the first quarter, but Jackolski's 31-yard scoring run on a draw play put the Pride in front for good with 5:24 left in the first quarter.
For the third straight game, junior linebacker Sam Nana-Sinkam recorded double-figure tackles for Bucknell as he led the team with 15, including eight solo. Ahkiel White posted three tackles and picked off his third career pass midway through the fourth quarter with Hofstra driving into field goal range.
Shaun Pasternak, who has three 100-yard receiving games this season, was held to 46 yards on three catches. However, he did have two catches nullified after landing out of bounds. Pasternak now has 489 yards this season, the second-most by a Bison under sixth-year head coach Tim Landis.
While the Bison suffered their second defeat of the season, they had their friar share of big plays. Josh Lee and Kevin Mullen each had 29-yard runs, with Mullen's the longest of his career. Additionally, Lair had a 34-yard scamper and Pasternak hauled in a 30-yard pass from Trigg.
Luke Bonus paced Hofstra with 10 tackles, including eight solo stops.
With their non-league slate over, the Bison will being Patriot League play next Saturday, Oct. 18, at Georgetown. Kickoff for the contest is slated for 1 p.m.
