Box Score GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College football team won its Liberty League opener 27-14 over Susquehanna University on Boswell Field this afternoon. The Statesmen scored the game's first 20 points of the game on the way to their third win of the season.

Hobart (3-0, 1-0) gained 370 yards of offense, including a season-high 221 on the ground. Senior running back Anthony Hobaica (Proctor/Utica, N.Y.) led the way with 80 yards rushing and a touchdown as well as 24 yards receiving and another TD, while sophomore running back Andrew Marlier (Lake Forest/Lake Forest, Ill.) rushed for a team-high 97 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, the Statesmen stymied the Crusaders (1-3, 0-1), particularly in the first half. Susquehanna gained just 227 yards of offense (109 rush/118 pass). Before halftime, the visitors managed just two first downs, only 56 yards (53/3), and went 0 for 8 on third downs.

Senior linebacker Justin Hager (Salamanca/Salamanca, N.Y.) led Hobart with 10 tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. Classmate defensive tackle Ryan Aruck (Canandaigua/Canandaigua, N.Y.) was close behind with nine stops, while junior linebacker Ryan Robinson (Johnson City/Johnson City, N.Y.) chipped in seven tackles, an interception, and a forced fumble.

Junior running back Dave Pavelitz (Hanover/Warrior Run, Pa.) accounted for more than half of Susquehanna's offense, rushing for a game-high 107 yards and a touchdown and catching two passes for nine yards. First-year linebacker Mitch Phillips (Millersburg/Millersburg, Pa.) paced the defense with 10 tackles and a forced fumble.

Hobart took advantage of a pair of first quarter fumbles to build a 13-0 lead. Robinson set up the first TD, knocking the ball out of Pavelitz hands at the Crusaders' 28. Hager recovered for the Statesmen. Two players later, Hobaica sprung free on Hobart's longest scoring play of the season, sprinting 35 yards to the end zone.

On the ensuing possession, Susquehanna first-year quarterback Rich Palazzi (Wallenpaupack/Wallenpaupack, Pa.) was sacked by Hager, jarring the ball lose for junior end Tony Guidetti (Williston Northampton/Queensbury, N.Y.) to recover at the Crusaders' 35. Three plays later, Marlier punched it in from 3 yards out. The extra point was wide left leaving the Statesmen a 13-0 lead.

Hobart made it 20-0 late in the second half, using a 33-yard scramble by senior quarterback Rich Doyle (Blair Academy/Staten Island, N.Y.) and a 31-yard completion from Doyle to Hobaica to cover the 64 yards to the end zone.

Susquehanna broke up the shutout midway through the third quarter. Pavelitz carried six times for 42 yards, including the final seven on the 10-play, 83-yard drive.

The Statesmen answered midway through the fourth quarter when Doyle (31-14-2, 149 yds, 2 TD) hit first-year wideout Garth Muratori (Briarcliff/Briarcliff Manor, N.Y.) for 10 yards and a TD, capping an 11-play, 49-yard march that ran 5:35 off the clock.

Senior quarterback Derek Pope (Selinsgrove/Selinsgrove, Pa.) engineered the final scoring drive of the day. He completed 7-of-9 passes for 60 yards, the last 8 on junior split end J.J. Moran's (Pottsville/Pottsville, Pa.) scoring catch with 1:38 left. Pope was 9-of-17 for 89 yards with an interception in relief of Palazzi (13-4-0, 29 yds). The Crusaders attempted an on-side kick, but the ball sailed out of bounds untouched and Hobart ran out the clock.

The Statesmen are back in action on Oct. 4, when they travel to St. Lawrence (0-4, 0-1) for a 1 p.m. kickoff.