Whittier guard Aamari Smith knew he was ejected when he picked up his second technical foul with 12:47 to play, but he wasn't actually disqualified from the game for more than three more minutes. Photo by Ryan Coleman, d3photography.com

LAS VEGAS -- Day 2 at the D3hoops.com Classic featured two missed foul shots with 0.3 seconds to play, a belated ejection, and a furious last-minute comeback on the men's side and a series of impressive rebounding performances on the women's side.

• Remaining schedule with links to coverage
• Day 1 recap: Redlands pulls away
• Saturday's full scoreboard: Men | Women
• D3hoops.com Classic record book

Late free throws were the difference as Ramapo edged Mount Union 65-64 for its eighth win of the season and its 11th win in 11 Classic appearances.

After Mount Union took a 64-59 lead with 1:23 to play on Elijah Farrington’s free throw, Ramapo got two free throws from Jordan Myers. Mount Union was fouled but missed both free throws, and the Roadrunners got two Justin Bladen free throws to pull within one at 64-63.

After a Purple Raider miss, Ramapo grabbed the rebound and got the ball to Myers who called for a clear out, backed his way toward the rim, and got fouled on a hook shot attempt. He splashed both free throws, putting the Roadrunners in front, 65-64. Mount Union had one more possession and got fouled with 0.3 seconds left but missed both free throws.

Myers posted 25 points with five rebounds and went seven of nine from the foul line, including the game-winning shot for Ramapo (8-3).. Mount Union (6-3) got 13 points apiece from Christian Parker and Kevin Moore, but the Purple Raiders shot 18 for 34 from the foul line.

Whittier sprinted out to a comfortable lead, lost its top player, and then held off Edgewood, 85-79.

Aamari Smith, who leads Division III with 30.1 points per game, scored Whittier’s first 11 points and drew three fouls on his defender in the first six minutes of the game, as the Poets jumped on Edgewood and took a 19-point lead before the Eagles whittled the lead down to 10 at the half.

Midway through the second half, with Whittier still leading by double digits, Smith drained a fade away jumper but was called for a technical foul. Even though it was Smith’s second technical foul of the game, he was allowed to play for a couple more minutes and score four more points before the officials corrected the mistake and ejected him from the game.

Edgewood eventually closed within seven points on Matt Kirk’s three pointer and then Danny Mulcare’s layup cut the deficit to 82-77 with 32 seconds left. Whittier struggled to inbound the ball but called a timeout shortly before nearly turning the ball over. The Poets settled down and got the ball to Andrew Milot, who was fouled, and he calmly splashed both free throws to seal the win.

Smith finished with 27 points on 8-for-19 shooting and Milot added 20 more for Whittier (8-2), which has already eclipsed last season’s win total.

On the women’s side, fast starts led to comfortable wins for Colorado College, Cal Lutheran, and Redlands.
Colorado College showed why it’s on the fringe of national rankings by rolling over Susquehanna, 74-45, behind a dominant performance by All-American Zoe Tomlinson.

The Tigers did not allow a Susquehanna field goal until 1:51 to play in the first period at which point Colorado College already led 21-4. Susquehanna steadied itself in the second period and battled back within seven on an 8-0 run capped by Grace Meehan’s jumper, but the Tigers overwhelmed the River Hawks in the third period with a 22-2 run that put the game out of reach. Tomlinson scored seven of her game-high 26 points in that stretch. She also grabbed 18 rebounds, as Colorado College (8-1) outrebounded Susquehanna 61-28.

Cal Lutheran dominated the paint and battled through an injury to down SUNY New Paltz, 70-58. The Regals jumped out to a 35-16 lead midway through the second quarter as Cal Lutheran forward Alline Ballard used her size and speed to score at will. Back-to-back threes by Morgan Hammell and Julia Sabatino helped the Hawks close the gap to 36-25 with two minutes to play, and that remained the score entering the half.

After scoring 15 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in the first half, Ballard battled through leg cramps and played less than two minutes in the second. SUNY New Paltz pulled within eight on Caitlin Mullen’s three-pointer but Natalie Villamor answered with a three as part of a 6-0 quarter-closing run for Cal Lutheran, and the Regals were not threatened the rest of the way.
Janna Holley and Kaiya Mack combined for 24 points, eight rebounds, five steals and three assists for Cal Lutheran (6-3). Sabatino led all scorers with 19 points on 6-for-15 shooting with three 3-pointers.

Despite a three-week layoff, Redlands started fast and cruised past the Kangaroos, 79-56. The Bulldogs held SUNY Canton to two field goals against eight turnovers and led 20-5 after one period. Redlands forward Colbi Zorich got hot in the second quarter, scoring eight points, and then erupted for 16 more in the third period. Hope Aniceto briefly ignited SUNY Canton’s offense with three straight 3-pointers, but the Bulldogs scored the next 13 points to remove any chance of a Kangaroo comeback.

Zorich scored 30 points and grabbed eight rebounds while Vegas-native AJ Hicks posted 15 points and 18 rebounds for Redlands (6-5). Natalie Bartle tallied 15 points and nine rebounds in her second game of the season for SUNY Canton (3-2).