FREDERICK, Md. – The Falcons struggled to gain offensive traction and fell 77-51 to the Hood Blazers on Wednesday night. Messiah shot 16.0% (4-of-25) from beyond the arc and 27.9% from the field (17-of-61), both season lows. Will Young IV highlighted the Falcons' efforts with a career-high 19-points and nine rebounds. 
 
Slow Start
The Falcons opened up the game on the wrong side of a 15-0 run, but a Will Young IV layup ended the Blazers' run with 11:52 remaining in the first-half to give the Falcons their first points of the game. Young IV continued scoring for Messiah, earning six of the first eight points for the Falcons. 
 
Playing From Behind
EJ Porter drained a three-pointer with just over nine minutes to play in the first-half to cut Hood's lead to single-digits at 19-11, but the Blazers continued to utilize heavy pressure to pull away in the first half. The Blazers sunk back-to-back three-pointers to take a 16-point lead over the Falcons with 6:35 remaining before the half. 
 
After holding their 16-point lead, Hood worked their lead up to a 21-point advantage over the last four minutes of the first half.
 
The Falcons struggled on both sides of the court in the first half, giving up seven turnovers and shooting 4-31 (12.9%) from the field. The Blazers out rebounded the Falcons  31-18 in the first 20 minutes of the game, helping Hood to a 37-16 lead at the break.

Blazers Pull Away
The Blazers struck first in the second half with a three-pointer with the shot clock expiring but Kyle Krout responded with a three of his own for the Falcons. 
 
Hood followed Krout's three with a 9-0 run to take a 49-19 lead. Matt Glogowski ended the streak with a layup, but the Blazers kept pushing, answering with a pair of layups sandwiched around a Messiah turnover.
 
Over the course of the final 14:21 of regulation, the Blazers ballooned their lead to as many as a 34 points at 58-24. Points from Caleb Light, Matt Glogowski and Will Young IV helped the Falcons go on a 9-0 run, cutting the deficit down to 25. The Blazers stayed hot, responding with a 9-0 run of their own over the next 1:33 to bump the lead back up to 34 points at 67-33.
 
With under four minutes remaining, a long jumper from Morris Taylor reduced the Blazers' lead to under 30 points, but Hood responded with a three-point to make it 73-42 with 3:19 to play. 
 
In the closing minutes of regulation, Alex Decinti connected on a three-pointer for his first points of the season and his first career trey, but the Blazers claimed the 77-51 victory.

What's Up Next
With the loss Messiah falls to 7-12 overall and 3-7 in the MAC Commonwealth. The Falcons will return to Grantham on Saturday to take on Alvernia at 4:00 p.m. Messiah defeated the Golden Wolves 68-63 earlier this season in Reading on Dec. 8, 2018.