Box Score
Grantham, PA — It's win, win, win or go home for Messiah.
The Falcons took care of part one Saturday night.
Needing wins in its final three regular-season games for a plausible berth in the upcoming Commonwealth Conference post-season tournament, Messiah kept its hopes alive via a 65-52 win over visiting Arcadia University Saturday, keeping the Knights winless in league play.
Four Messiah players charted double-figure point totals for the first time this season, as the Falcons expanded on a 30-27 halftime lead and never trailed in the final 20 minutes, maintaining a mathematical chance to participate in the four-team tourney.
“We're aware of the scenario,” Messiah head coach Rick Van Pelt said Saturday. “We lose, and we're done. But that can't affect how we approach things. We're going at each game like we would no matter what. Tonight, we shot the ball pretty well and we defended pretty well. It was enough to keep us in the hunt.”
Fresh off a crushing, 56-64 loss at Lebanon Valley College Wednesday, Messiah (11-11, 6-6) needed a bit of time to get its collective legs in front of a packed house at Brubaker Auditorium. A pair of early three-pointers from Arcadia (5-17, 0-12) helped the Knights establish a 13-9 lead seven minutes in, while a layup from Arcadia's Rashon Brock gave the visitors their largest lead of the game — 18-12 — three minutes later.
It was then that Van Pelt's group got rolling, however, making use of a 12-4 run over the next six and a half minutes to alter the complexion of the night. Back-to-back triples from freshman Brad Bolen keyed the push, helping the Falcons to a 24-22 lead with 3:25 to go before the break.
Arcadia responded with a three-pointer of its own with 2:44 to go, but back-to-back downtown dial-ups from junior Trey Ritzman and sophomore Chris Yoder helped the hosts end on a 6-2 run, leading to the three-point lead at the intermission.
That spark would not fizzle during the intermission, as Van Pelt's squad scored eight straight points to open the final stanza, taking a 38-27 lead just four minutes in. When freshman David Fernandez made one of two free throws just a minute later, Messiah led 44-31 and looked to be in complete control.
For the most part, the Falcons were. Even a 10-3 Arcadia spurt wasn't enough to shake Van Pelt's troops, as another triple from Bolen regained a 52-41 lead with 9:40 to play. Not even a ridiculous dunk in traffic from the Knights' 6-1 Brock could turn the tide, as Messiah kept a 58-48 lead with 2:40 remaining. A three ball from Arcadia's Colin McCarthy pulled the visitors within seven (58-51) with 36 seconds to go, but it was too little, too late: Messiah canned five of its final six free throws in the game's last 26 seconds to hang on — with sophomore Derek Mosley teasing the dunk-yearning crowd with a breakaway layup as time expired.
Yoder paced the Falcons' scoring effort with 13 points on four of six shooting, highlighting a season-high four double-figure scorers: Bolen finished with 11 thanks to a three-for-three effort from downtown, while Fernandez added 11 and Trey Ritzman 10. Fernandez also grabbed nine rebounds. Senior Josh Hartman and freshman Christyan DeVan each dished out a game-high four assists.
“Defensively, we had stretches where we were pretty good and stretches where we weren't,” Van Pelt said. “We're battling sickness right now, and a lot of our guys aren't fully healthy. Some different guys have had to step up because of that, and tonight they did. We were able to distribute minutes (played) pretty evenly, and I thought we had good balance on the offensive end in regards to spreading the ball around. Now, we gotta go get Lyco. Somehow, someway. “
Messiah will travel to Lycoming College — a team already eliminated from post-season consideration — Tuesday. Game time is set for 8 p.m. in the Warriors' Lamade Gymnasium.
