|
Tierney Hiltz led No. 8 Lebanon Valley past conference rival Messiah. |
It's never too early to pick up a big win over a primary contender for the conference title. The Lebanon Valley women and Virginia Wesleyan men both did that on Wednesday night.
No. 8 Lebanon Valley defeated Messiah 54-47 in both teams' MAC Commonwealth opener. Lebanon Valley guard Tierney Hiltz grabbed a defensive rebound off a missed Messiah shot with 15:59 to play and scored a layup at the other end to give Lebanon Valley the lead and start a 14-2 run that launched the Flying Dutchmen to victory. The Falcons cut the lead to three late in the second half, but were unable to overcome Lebanon Valley's defensive effort. Messiah shot just 31 percent from the field (20-for-64) in the game. Hiltz finished with 24 points for Lebanon Valley.
In men's action, No. 5 Virginia Wesleyan won its ODAC opener against Randolph-Macon 63-60. The Marlins held the Yellow Jackets without a field goal for the final 3:14. Chris Astorgia hit a jumper for Virginia Wesleyan to tie the game at 60 with 2:01 left and then he hit another with 57 seconds left to give the Marlins the final margin of victory.
No. 24. UW-Whitewater stayed unbeaten by topping Illinois Wesleyan, 65-53. The Warhawks turned 24 Titan turnovers into 23 points. Hood dealt No. 20 Salisbury its first loss of the season, 67-55. The Blazers only used eight players with two starters fouling out, but the Hood starters scored 60 points and grabbed 32 boards.
|
Austin Claunch and Emory won their home opener against LaGrange, 89-70. |
Outside the Top 25, William Paterson topped Ramapo 82-71 to stay perfect. Lance Brown had 25 points and nine boards for the 6-0 Pioneers. Jake Browne's layup with three seconds remaining made Anderson a winner over Defiance, 70-69. Wilkes blasted Misericordia 78-50 to improve to 4-1, 1-0 in the MAC Freedom Conference. Lycoming edged Albright 84-82 behind Kevin Anthony's 28 points as the Warriors moved to 5-0.
The Wendy's College Classic, which was formerly called the JP Morgan Chase Tournament, began for the men on Wednesday night. No. 12 Rochester defeated Geneseo State 72-60 behind 25 points for John DiBartolomeo. The Yellowjackets face Nazareth which defeated Rochester Tech 72-66. The Golden Flyers beat Rochester 82-64 eight days ago. Hobart and St. John Fisher also won their first round games.
Other women's action
Augsburg snapped a losing streak that spanned 50 games and a quarter-century, as the Auggies defeated St. Benedict for the first time since Feb. 22, 1986. Serenae Levine scored a season-high 17 points, including 9-of-10 from the free-throw line, and posted a career-high six steals, while Brittany Zins posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the 61-50 road win.
No. 25 Capital dropped its second straight game after opening the season 4-0. Wilmington stifled the Crusaders who shot 15 percent (10-for-65) in a 49-30 loss to the Quakers. Makenzie Wippel scored 15 points for the Quakers, who are now 4-0 themselves. Nineteen players logged minutes for Wilmington. No. 2 Chicago rallied in the final five minutes to turn away visiting Wheaton (Ill.), 71-60. Eastern thumped Manhattanville 75-52 behind another big night for Shante Jones (24 points, six assists, seven steals). Defending CSAC champion Neumann shook off its 1-4 start and beat Gwynedd-Mercy 85-77 to start conference play.