Grantham, PA — It may not have been the most artistic game ever played in Brubaker Auditorium, but Messiah head coach
Rick Van Pelt was not complaining after his squad captured a 77-67 win over visiting Lancaster Bible College Tuesday night, the team's third win in four games on the year.
Arguably the most eye-popping stat of the night came from senior Kyle Snyder, who grabbed a career-high 17 rebounds in 32 minutes of work.
Of course, such as stat alludes to plenty of missed shots, and there were: The teams combined to shoot a lowly 14 of 28 from the free throw line (68.3 percent) and 16 of 46 from beyond the three-point arc (34.8 percent), providing Snyder ample opportunity to add to his stats.
The 6-2 guard did just that, seemingly coming up with every board — including four on the offensive end — as the Falcons clung to a second-half lead that never fully dissipated.
“I'm not really sure what to say after this one,” Van Pelt said following the game's conclusion. “I thought (Lancaster Bible) played well and played with a lot of energy. It was hard for us to get stops. I think, in the end, the key to the game was our ability to get to the basket. Had we not been able to do that, it may have been a different story.”
Ironically, Messiah (3-1) opened the game doing just the opposite, hoisting (and missing) six three-pointers in the game's opening six minutes, trailing by a 7-0 score early on. A jumper from freshman Chris Yoder was followed by back-to-back layups from senior Jamie Yoder, however, and when Jamie Yoder buried the team's first long ball at the 13:20 mark, the Falcons had claimed a 9-7 lead.
Van Pelt's squad would go on to open up a 10-point lead on two occasions in the first half and a 33-21 advantage with just 3:03 to play, but a three pointer from the Chargers' Kevin Keltner and four made free throws helped cut the Falcons' lead to just 35-28 at the intermission.
Messiah's improved ability to attack the basket was statistically noted in the second half, however, as the club attempted 22 second-period free throws after taking just four in the first 20 minutes of play.
And while Van Pelt's club would only convert on 15 of those 22 chances (68.2 percent), the Falcons were buoyed by Chris Yoder's marvelous offensive performance, as the 6-4 guard scored 15 second-half points on five of seven shooting.
On the evening, the younger Yoder finished with a career-high 23 points on eight of 12 shooting, dishing out three assists to go with a steal and just one turnover.
“Chris, heck, you look at his stats, and that's a very good game for anyone,” Van Pelt said. “He got to the basket for us and really made some plays when our offense wasn't at its best collectively.”
A Chris Yoder three-pointer pushed Messiah ahead by a 48-33 count just over seven minutes into the second half, capping a 13-5 Falcons' run to open the period. A driving layup from the Manheim, Pa. native made it a 57-44 Messiah lead with 8:54 to play, while a long ball from Jamie Yoder kept the spread at 11 points — 65-54 — with 3:50 on the clock.
Lancaster Bible (0-3) made things slightly interesting over the next few possessions, however, trimming Messiah's lead to just six points — 67-61 — with just over two minutes to go.
That lead may have been less had the Chargers not missed two free throws during that stretch.
“They were quick and they were scrappy,” Van Pelt said. “I told our guys (before the game) that they played like soccer players. Every cut was sharp, every move was quick. They gave us some troubles on the defensive end.”
Thankfully for Van Pelt, Messiah executed late — mainly at the free throw line. Chris Yoder scored his last field goal of the night with 1:17 to play, regaining a 69-61 lead. Following a missed three from LBC, junior Josh Hartman was fouled, making both with 1:01 to go.
Two more free throws from Jamie Yoder would restore a 73-61 Falcons' lead with under a minute to play, while only a late three-ball from Keltner would trim the lead back to single digits (75-67 with nine seconds to play).
Chris Yoder's aforementioned point total was a game-high, while Jamie Yoder chipped in 18 on six of 12 shooting. Sophomore Phil Ribbens scored nine points, while no other Messiah player added more than seven.
Lancaster Bible's Madison Warfel did his best to keep his team close, scoring 22 points on an eight of 14 shooting effort, including a four of seven clip from downtown. Keltner finished with 19 points on six of 15 shooting, going four of eight from deep.
Snyder, meanwhile, posted his monstrous evening on the glass on an otherwise quiet night, as the senior scored just four points on a two of four shooting clip. His 17 caroms bettered his previous high of 15, a number he had set twice before: One came in a 63-72 loss at Lebanon Valley College on Jan. 17 of last season, the other in a 66-61 win over Immaculata University on Jan. 5, 2008.
Despite being just 6-2, Tuesday marked the 10th time that Snyder had posted a double-figure rebounding total in his career.
“Why was Dennis Rodman a great rebounder?” Van Pelt asked rhetorically. “It has everything to do with just go doing it. It's that never-stop attitude. Kyle has that. He's a tremendous competitor, and he never lets up.”
Messiah will return to the floor shortly after the Thanksgiving holiday, as the team will host York College Saturday night at Brubaker. Game time is set for 7 p.m.
