CORTLAND, N.Y. - Grove City outscored host Cortland 17-0 in the second half to pull away from a halftime tie and the Wolverines defeated the Red Dragons, 31-14, in a season-opening matchup of nationally ranked teams. Grove City entered the game ranked 23rd by both D3football.com and the AFCA, while Cortland was ranked 10th by D3football.com and 11th by the AFCA.
 
Grove City's defense recorded seven takeaways in the game with six interceptions and a fumble recovery. Ryan Montgomery and Noah Wheeler each intercepted two passes, with Wheeler returning one for a score. Mason Clouse and Dominic DiNinno each had an interception, and DiNinno also forced a fumble that resulted in a turnover. Cortland actually held a 257-253 advantage in total offensive yards.
 
Grove City running back Ian Demeri rushed 24 times for 81 yards and two touchdowns and Sutton Ellis completed 10-of-22 passes for 135 yards and a score. Breck Peacock caught seven passes for 105 yards and a touchdown. Brady Lane made a 37-yard field goal and averaged 40.2 yards on six punts.
 
Cortland quarterback Mike Rescigno (Arlington) ran 14 times for 45 yards and both of Cortland's touchdowns but completed just 11-of-28 passes for 161 yards with five interceptions. Craig Galea (Cross River/John Jay) was 3-of-6 on the Cortland's final possession for 11 yards with an interception. Jayson Zeva (East Northport/St. John the Baptist) caught six passes for 42 yards, Jacque LaPrarie (Smithtown/Smithtown West) caught four passes for 65 yards and Sam Cotton (Fulton/G. Ray Bodley) recorded three receptions for 46 yards.
 
Alessandro DeRosa (Webster/Webster Schroeder) led Cortland with 10 tackles, five solo. Aden Wiser (Highland) registered 2.5 sacks among his seven total tackles. Anthony Luciano (Loudonville/Shaker), Gavin Guers (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Blue Mountain) and Will Ligarzewski (Oceanside/Kellenberg Memorial) also finished with seven tackles each and Nazair Jean-Lubin (Freeport) totaled four tackles, two pass breakups and a forced fumble.
 
Caleb Brubaker paced Grove City with eight tackles, three for loss, and Jack Jollie finished with six tackles.
 
Cortland drove 79 yards on just four plays to score a touchdown on its opening drive. Rescigno ran for 28 yards on 2nd-and-5, then connected with LaPrairie for a 41-yard completion to the 5-yard line. Rescigno ran in on the next play, and Cole Callard's (Medina) extra point made it 7-0.
 
The Wolverines tied the game on a 9-play, 64-yard touchdown drive in the second quarter. Peacock completed the drive with a 13-yard TD catch on 3rd-and-10. On the next play from scrimmage, Montgomery intercepted a pass to set up Grove City on the Cortland 41-yard line, and six plays later Demeri ran for a 3-yard score to put the Wolverines up 14-7.
 
With just more than four minutes left in the half Jean-Lubin forced a fumble that Aidan Lochner (Ravena/Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk) recovered on the Grove City 40-yard line. Cotton caught a 23-yard pass to start the ensuing drive, and three plays later LaPrairie took a reception to the 1-yard line. Rescigno completed the drive with his second TD run of the day to tie the game. Cortland recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff and took over at the 22-yard line with 1:20 left, but Wheeler intercepted a pass in the end zone, after a tip by Clouse, on the next play.
 
Grove City took the lead less than two minutes into the third quarter when Wheeler intercepted a pass in the right flat and ran in 36 yards for a touchdown. The game remained 21-14 until more than midway through the fourth quarter. The Wolverines started a drive at their own 39-yard line with 11:52 left and ate up more than seven minutes of possession time. With 3rd-and-goal at the 8-yard line, Grove City moved back eight yards after a Wiser sack and five more on a delay of game penalty, but Lane connected on a 37-yard field goal to make it 24-14.
 
Cortland turned the ball over on downs on its next possession, and Grove City took seven plays to cover 25 yards, capped by a Demeri 4-yard TD run with 1:20 left to close the scoring.
 
Cortland will host Union College in a non-league game next Saturday at noon.

(story corrected on 9/7/25)