Clinton, N.Y. - "Another gritty win," according to Jack Cosgrove, the Dick McGee Head Coach for Colby Football, as the Mules defeated Hamilton College in Clinton 18-12, improving their record to 4-2 while Hamilton falls to 2-4.  

The hosts got out to an early lead thanks to two field goals and an early touchdown, jumping in front 12-0.  Colby got on the board with 20 seconds remaining in the second quarter to head into the half with a 12-3 deficit. 

As we've seen in four of the previous five games, Colby's second-half adjustments have been tremendous.  Including Saturday's performance, the Mules have outscored opponents 80-28 in the second half of 2022 contests, with 19 of those points-against coming in Hartford against undefeated Trinity.  Colby took the second and third drives of the second half for touchdowns, collecting 140 yards along the way across 15 plays. 

The Mules cut the lead to 12-10 with six minutes left in the third quarter when quarterback Matt Hersch connected with Jack Sawyer for a 29-yard passing score.  The second Colby touchdown of the half came with 13 minutes left to play in the contest when Keon Smart found pay dirt for his fourth rushing touchdown in as many games.  Hersch connected with Sawyer for the two-point conversion, and a six point lead.  

The defense took over down the stretch, recovering a fumble and forcing Hamilton to turnover on downs twice.  

Sawyer caught eight passes for 117 yards, marking his second 100-yard receiving performance of the year, the third of his career.  Hersch was 19-30 passing for 218 yards, posting his first 200-yard passing performance of the year.  Julian Young posted his fourth double-digit tackle performance of the season and currently ranks second in the conference in tackles.  Marc Dougherty collected seven tackles, currently ranking 7th in the NESCAC with 45.  

Colby remains on the road next week in Middlebury.  The Panthers are ranked second in the NESCAC with a 5-1 record, fresh off a 40-28 win against Bates in Lewiston.