GENESEO, N.Y. - The Elmira College flag football team hit the road for their first ever Empire 8 playoff game as they took on the Knights of SUNY Geneseo in the Empire 8 Championship Semifinals. The Soaring Eagles pulled off a remarkable comeback, overcoming a 20 point deficit to come away with a 34-26 victory. 

PLAY-BY-PLAY
The Knights' offense started strong, marching down the field on a seven-play, 66-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown and an early 7–0 lead. SUNY Geneseo forced an Elmira punt on the Soaring Eagles' first drive before extending their lead to 14–0 with a 41-yard touchdown drive. With Elmira College back on offense and facing 3rd-and-26, Hannah Smith found Faith Ingber for a 32-yard completion to spark the offense. After a 12-yard completion to Amarionah Dixon, Smith connected with Dixon again on a short reception in the end zone to make it 14–6. The Knights responded with a strong ground attack on the next drive, putting together a long march to regain their 14-point advantage. Elmira was forced to punt again, and SUNY Geneseo followed with another impressive drive—this time through the air—to extend their lead to 20. The Soaring Eagles refused to back down, as Smith completed passes to Dixon and Ingber for a combined 40 yards before capping the drive with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Dixon. Elmira entered halftime trailing 26–12.

Elmira came storming out of the break, with Smith completing passes to Dixon and Kylie Hook before hitting Dixon on a deep 30-yard reception and then a touchdown. After a successful two-point conversion, EC cut the deficit to six and quickly forced a Geneseo punt, which Ingber returned for 43 yards. The Soaring Eagles were unable to capitalize, however, turning the ball over on downs in the red zone. The EC defense responded with a fourth-down stop of its own, and the third quarter ended with the Knights leading 26–20. Elmira tied the game early in the fourth quarter as Smith found Dixon in the end zone once again. After another fourth-down stop by EC, the Soaring Eagles offense stayed hot, putting together a 70-yard drive in under two minutes. Smith spread the ball around, completing passes to Hook, Ingber, Dixon, and Nyla Capen before ultimately finding Hook for a 10-yard touchdown. Elmira also converted the two-point attempt to take an eight-point lead. On the final drive of the game, the Elmira defense stood tall, keeping Geneseo out of the end zone to secure the 34–26 victory.

LEADERS
Hannah Smith threw for 354 yards and 5 touchdowns on 35 completions. Amarionah Dixon had a dominant game, catching 15 catches for 178 yards and 4 touchdowns. Defensively, Jenica Jones led the way with 3 tackles for loss and 13 total tackles. Nyla Capen and Dixon each recorded an interception. 

UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles will face SUNY Brockport on the road in the Empire 8 Championship Final on Friday, April 24. Game time is set for 6:00 PM.