SELINSGROVE, Pa. - After trailing 36-32 at the half and 46-37 early on in the second half, the Messiah men's basketball team was able to pick up a 74-71 win on the road over Susquehanna University. Susquehanna would not go away down the stretch, cutting a late 68-61 Falcon lead to 73-71 with two seconds to play. Messiah made just enough free throws down the stretch to hold off the River Hawks charge. After a Sam Whittle free throw made it 74-71, the River Hawks had one final chance to tie the game. They were not able to get a good look at the basket and the Falcons held on for their 74-71 victory to move to 3-1 on the season.

Colin Sareyka led Messiah with 26 points while EJ Porter and Kyle Krout had 16 for the Falcons. Josh Darville had a team high 13 rebounds while picking up seven points. The Falcons will be back in action next Tuesday in Hitchcock Arena when they welcome Penn State Harrisburg for a 7:00 p.m. matchup. 

Back And Forth First Half
Susquehanna stormed out to a 7-2 lead at the beginning of the first half before the Falcons fought back with a 10-0 run to take a 12-7 lead. Leading the charge for Messiah was Colin Sareyka, who scored four points while EJ Porter and Kyle Krout knocked down threes during the run. The River Hawks then hit two threes of their own to take back a 13-12 lead over Messiah with 13:56 left in the half. The two teams continued to go back and forth, with neither team gaining the edge before the River Hawks took the momentum. With the score tied at 20-20, Thomas Sampson and Matt LaCorte knocked down threes for Susquehanna to take the 26-20 lead with just under eight minutes in the half. The River Hawks continued to hold onto this lead throughout the remainder of the half with the Falcons not able to grab the lead back.

A Porter three cut he lead to 35-32 before Susquehanna knocked down a late free throw to go into the half up 36-32. Threes reigned supreme in the first half with the two teams hitting a combined 14 three pointers in the half. The Falcons made six, with Porter making four of them while the River Hawks made eight and were led by Matt LaCorte's trio of threes.

Falcons Take Lead
In the second half Susquehanna took a 46-37 advantage before the Falcons fought back with a huge run of their own that changed the course of the game. With the help of Sareyka's eight points, the Falcons went on a 13-4 charge to tie the game at 50-50 with 10:51 remaining in the game. Messiah continued to inch their way back into the contest, taking their first lead at 52-50 on a Porter jumper since it was 15-13 with 13:13 left in the first half.

From this point, there were several lead changes with neither team making a game-changing move. Messiah continued their momentum from their rally though, holding a 62-58 lead while several Falcons chipped into the success.

Too Little Too Late
With time running out the Falcons clinged onto a 64-61 lead and drew a foul with 1:55 left where Sareyka picked up two free throws to extend their lead to 66-61 and force a River Hawk timeout. Despite several chances, Susquehanna could not find a big bucket as the Falcons held onto a 68-64 lead with 37 seconds remaining. The River Hawks were forced to foul and could not quite work their way back into the game and tie things up.

They continued to make things interesting though, knocking down a few three pointers to stay in the game, with the Falcons holding a late 72-69 lead. A missed free throw after a make allowed the River Hawks to cut the lead to 73-71 with just two seconds remaining on the clock. After a foul by Susquehanna, the Falcons went one and one at the line to make it 74-71. It was too little too late for the River Hawks as they were not able to get a good look with just a second left in the game, as Messiah picked up the 74-71 win.

Raining Threes
The Falcons and River Hawks used the three ball to fuel their offenses, making 22 threes combined. Messiah shot 47.6% from downtown, making 10 total. EJ Porter led the Falcons with four threes. Susquehanna shot 40% from the three-point line and made 12 total. Dominic Dunn and Matt LaCorte made a trio of threes for the River Hawks.

What's Up Next
As mentioned, this win improves Messiah to 3-1 overall on the season. They will be back in action next Tuesday, Nov. 26 when they battle the Nittany Lions of Penn State Harrisburg.