EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. – Ithaca quarterback Joe Germinerio ran 34 times for 159 yards and three touchdowns and completed 21-of-27 passes for 251 yards and two scores as the Bombers defeated Cortland, 32-20, in the 61st annual Cortaca Jug rivalry game. The contest set a Division III attendance record of 45,161 at MetLife Stadium, eclipsing the previous mark of 37,355 for the 2017 St. Thomas vs. St. John's (Minn.) game at Target Field in Minneapolis.

Cortland trailed 19-6 at halftime and 26-6 late in the third quarter before rallying to within 26-20 with 6:53 left. Ithaca, however, drove 78 yards on eight plays, capped by Germinerio's 46-yard TD pass to Andrew Vito with 3:06 remaining. Anthony Robinson's interception on Cortland's next series sealed the win.

Ithaca held a staggering 44:26 to 15:34 advantage in time of possession, including more than 10 minutes with the ball in each quarter. The Bombers outgained Cortland in total offense, 446-307, and also forced three Red Dragon turnovers while not committing any. Ithaca was, however, assessed 11 penalties for 141 yards compared to Cortland's four assessed penalties for 43 yards.

Cortland tailback Zach Tripodi (New Fairfield, CT) rushed for three touchdowns and finished with 17 carries for 61 yards. Jason Carlock (Babylon) caught four passes for 123 yards, including an 80-yard reception to help set up a third-quarter touchdown. Brett Segala (Webster/Webster Schroeder) completed 13-of-27 passes for 191 yards, in the process becoming Cortland's career leader with 6,355 yards. The previous mark of 6,271 was set by Steven Ferreira from 2015-17. Segala now ranks third with 450 career completions, one shy of second place (Dick Puccio's 451 from 1988-91) and six short of Ferreira's school-record 456.

Gregory Alfieri (Hawthorne/Westlake) led Cortland with a career-high 15 tackles. Dylan Dubuque (East Greenbush/Columbia) and Paul Imperiale (East Meadow) also set career highs with 13 tackles apiece and Vincenzo Pagliaroli (Sparkill/Tappan Zee) finished with nine tackles.

Ithaca receiver Andrew Vito caught 12 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown and Will Gladney made four catches for 59 yards and a score. Khiry Brown led the Bombers with nine tackles, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and two pass breakups and Nick Garone finished with six tackles and a blocked kick.

Ithaca drove 13 plays for 80 yards on the game's opening series. Germinerio finished the possession with a 1-yard TD run to put the Bombers ahead 7-0. Ithaca recovered a fumble on Cortland's next drive and drove to the Red Dragon 24-yard line, but two penalties moved the ball back to the 49-yard line. Ithaca got the ball back to the 31-yard line but Nicholas Bahamonde had his 48-yard field goal blocked by Angelo Foster (Newburgh/Newburgh Free Academy)  for his first miss of the season after hitting his first 10 attempts.

Cortland got on the board with 10:18 left in the second quarter on Tripodi's 6-yard scoring run, but Garone blocked the PAT kick to keep Ithaca ahead 7-6. Cortland entered the game 45-for-45 on PAT kicks during the season. Ithaca then responded with a 15-play, 76-yard drive. Germinerio scored on a 1-yard run with 1:55 left but the Bombers missed the extra point and led 13-6.

The Red Dragons looked like they might get some points on the board when Segala hit Cole Burgess (Greenwich) for a 25-yard reception to the Ithaca 30. Brown, however, ripped the ball out of Burgess' hands and returned the "fumble" to Cortland's 46-yard line. Ithaca later called timeout with 21 seconds left and the ball on the Cortland 10-yard line, and on the next play Germinerio rolled left, was flushed back to the right, but then turned upfield and found the end zone for a touchdown run with nine seconds left. Travis Alvarez (Keyport, NJ) blocked the PAT and Ithaca led 19-6 at halftime. Alvarez and Foster have each blocked three kicks this season as part of Cortland's team school-record 12 blocks.

The Ithaca lead grew to 26-6 with 9:49 left in the third quarter. The Bombers elected to go for it on 4th-and-1 and Germinerio hit Gladney on the right side of the end zone for a 23-yard TD pass.

After the teams each traded two punts, Cortland had the ball on its own 12-yard line with 2:02 left in the third. Segala connected with Carlock for an 80-yard reception to the Ithaca 8-yard line, and a pass interference penalty on the next play moved the ball to the 2. Tripodi's TD run with 1:30 left cut Ithaca's lead to 26-13.

Ithaca quickly faced 1st-and-30 on its next series after two penalties, and on the first play of the fourth quarter faced 3rd-and-24 from its own 12-yard line. Germinerio threw a 35-yard pass to Jacob Cooney to keep the drive going. The series eventually ended with a missed 28-yard field goal, but the Bombers still managed to chew up eight minutes on the drive.

Cortland strung together a seven-play, 80-yard drive that featured 45 yards of Ithaca penalties and a 24-yard Burgess catch to the 3-yard line. Two plays after that reception Tripodi scored on a 3-yard run and Cortland was down only 26-20 with 6:53 on the clock.

Ithaca drove from its own 22-yard line to the Cortland 46 and faced 3rd-and-6 with 3:14 remaining. After a Cortland timeout, the Bombers faked a handoff and a reverse and Germinerio hit a wide open Vito for the TD pass that helped close out the game.

Cortland and Ithaca are both 8-2 after the non-league contest. In a small consolation, Cortland finished as Empire 8 co-champion with a 5-1 record after Brockport lost at Morrisville, but Brockport earned the league's NCAA berth based on its head-to-head win over the Red Dragons. Cortland will likely host the New York Bowl next Saturday - more details will be announced on Monday.

(NOTE: Story edited on Monday, Nov. 18, to reflect blocked field goal by Foster that initially was not scored as a block.)