Penn captures share of Ivy League football title

ITHACA, N.Y. - The dark clouds that rolled into Ithaca late Saturday afternoon did not dampen the Penn football team's spirits or its celebration.

Junior Tre Solomon ran for 173 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Quakers (7-3, 6-1) to a 42-20 victory over Cornell at Schoellkopf Field, and a share of their second straight Ivy League championship.

"I'm just so proud of the whole team. They made plays all over the place," said coach Ray Priore, who has been a part of 12 conference championships at Penn. "It was just a great day to be a Quaker."

Senior quarterback Alek Torgersen starred on Penn's first scoring drive midway through the opening quarter, completing two first-down passes and setting up Solomon's first touchdown with a pair of keepers after fake handoffs.

After Cornell (4-6, 2-5) cut the Penn lead to 7-6 less than a minute later, Torgersen ended a 14-play, 79-yard drive with a 22-yard scoring pass to sophomore Christian Pearson.

"I am forever grateful to Penn football for giving me the opportunity to play quarterback for three years," Torgersen said. "As it's coming to an end, it's sweet, but it's going to hurt a little bit these next couple days when you wake up and don't have practice."

Solomon played a part in both Quakers touchdowns in the second quarter. He ran for 50 yards on their first scoring drive, which ended with Torgersen's 5-yard run, and added his second scoring run from a yard out with two seconds left in the half.

A little trickery led to Penn's score in the third quarter. On first and goal, Torgersen tossed a lateral to offensive lineman Nick Demes, who rumbled 7 yards into the end zone.

"We ran it in practice, and I didn't know Coach Reagan had put it in until I watched it," Priore said, referring to offensive coordinator John Reagan.

Torgersen scored on a 1-yard run, capping a 16-play drive that took almost nine minutes of the fourth quarter.

The senior finished 24 of 31 passing for 284 yards and added 58 yards rushing. Junior Justin Watson caught 11 passes for 106 yards, becoming Penn's all-time single-season leader in receptions and receiving yards.

Sophomore Mason Williams intercepted Cornell's Dalton Banks in the second quarter, giving him six for the season, the most by a Penn defensive back since 1984.

The Quakers will share the Ivy League title with Princeton, which defeated Dartmouth, 38-21, on Saturday.