By: Dylan O’Loughlin
The Brockport Golden Eagles hosted the Utica Pioneers on Senior Day and the final game of the regular season with hopes of earning a bowl game for the ninth straight year. Despite going up 20-7 midway through the third quarter, the Golden Eagles could not hold off the Pioneers, gave up 21 unanswered points and fell 28-20.
After a first quarter where neither team could find a rhythm, the Golden Eagles struck first sticking to the run game as sophomore quarterback Zymier Jackson and junior running back Isaiah Simmons found paydirt on back-to-back drives to give Brockport a 14-0 lead.
The tides started to turn though at the end of the first half as after a six-minute drive, the Pioneers found themselves in a fourth and long situation in Brockport’s redzone. After a pass that looked to be incomplete, the Golden Eagles were called for a defensive pass interference that put the Pioneers inside the 10.
Empire 8 leading quarterback Tyler Szalkowski took advantage of the call as the junior found Empire 8 leading senior wide receiver Byrce Palmer for the Pioneers’ first touchdown of the game and cut the lead to seven at half.
Coming out of the half, Brockport struck first again. It was Jackson for a second time, taking a read option 30 yards to the house to give Brockport a 20-7 lead.
“We prepared all week for this, and I felt like I came out here and executed” Jackson said. “There’s room to get better and we just move forward from this day on.”
That was the last time the Golden Eagles found the endzone. Halftime adjustments for the Pioneers were too much for Brockport as despite the wet conditions, Utica kept slinging the ball, gaining first downs and moving the ball down field.
It wasn’t without a fight though from the Golden Eagles as in redzone territory on back-to-back possessions, Brockport picked off Szalkowski twice, once by freshman linebacker Austyn Gollnitz and one by sophomore corner back Kyle Slywka to halt potential game-winning drives.
But the pass game was too much for the Golden Eagles. After not being able to move the ball down the field on multiple possessions, Utica capitalized as Szalkowski found his No. 1 option Palmer two more times in the endzone to make it a one-point game with a chance to tie.
The Golden Eagles held strong though and blocked the PAT to keep a one-point lead with under 10 minutes to play.
Brockport tried to chew the clock with running the ball, but the Pioneers kept getting stops. It all came ahead with two minutes to go as Brockport punted one final time with one of the best defenses in the nation needing to stop one of the best passing offenses in DIII to win the game.
The pass game was too much for the Golden Eagles though as Szalkowski took command of the final drive and took the Pioneers 55 yards down the field in eight plays to put Utica in field goal range.
From there it was junior kicker Nico Duarte who knocked down a 21-yarder to give Utica a 22-20 lead, its first of the game. Duarte finishes the season 5/6 from field goal range, leading the Empire 8.
Brockport still had 30 seconds left and one more chance to win the game. Junior quarterback Ben Gocella connected with senior wide receiver Tyler Ronk to get the Golden Eagles into Utica territory.
But on the following play, Gocella was picked off by 2024 Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year and captain of the Utica defense, safety Eli Douglas who took the ball all the way back to the house for a pick-6 to make the score 28-20.
It was the senior’s sixth interception of the season, 14th of career and fourth pick-six of Douglas’s career as well.
For Brockport, Jackson led the way with two touchdowns and 96 yards on the ground. Simmons finished with 135 yards and a touchdown on 20 attempts, averaging 6.8 yards a carry. The leading running back in the Empire 8 and top five running back in the nation finished his junior season with 100-plus yards in nine out of 10 games.
Gocella finished 9/17 for 100 yards and an interception while senior Daniel Manneh led the receivers with three receptions for 41 yards. Defensively, sophomore safety Liam Nealy led the way with seven tackles (one for loss) while senior Luca Friedman followed with seven and a pass break up. Freshman edge rushers Nahzier Wilson and Jayden Ferrell finished with five tackles (one for loss) and a pass break up while Slywka and Gollnitz added four tackles apiece to go along with their interceptions.
For Utica, Szalkowski went 27/48 for 318 yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions with 28 yards on the ground. Palmer led all receivers with nine receptions for 137 yards and three touchdowns while senior tight end Logan Frederick hauled in 10 receptions for 88 yards. Senior captain Antonio Cianfarani added six receptions for 54 yards. Defensively Douglas led the way with eight tackles, three passes defended and a pick six while sophomore linebacker Isaiah Thomas followed with seven tackles and one for loss.
Despite falling on Senior Day, the impact of the 22 seniors who played their last game today will last for years to come for the Golden Eagles.
“Those dudes (seniors) brought it every day,” Jackson said. “I won’t forget a single one of them and I appreciate them with everything I got in me.”
Brockport ends the season with a 6-4 record while Utica finishes with an 8-2 record. With the loss Brockport loses its chance at a bowl game, finishing fourth in the Empire 8. The Golden Eagles turn their attention to next year where Brockport looks to reload and make it back to the playoffs.
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