GETTYSBURG, Pa. – The York College men's basketball team suffered their second-straight loss as they fell to Gettysburg 67-54 on Sunday in Gettysburg. The Spartans drop to 3-2 on the campaign while the Bullets, who are one of the top squads in the region, improve to 3-1 on the young season.
Right from the start, the hosts put on the pressure as the Bullets raced out to a 13-0 lead 5:54 into the contest. Kevin Kennedy knocked down two triples while Alex Zurn recorded five points and Andrew Powers put in a lay-up to give the Gettysburg squad the early advantage.
The Spartans offensive woes lasted until Kevin Whaley knocked down a jumper 6:17 into the game. That bucket however launched a lengthy run for the Green and White as the Spartans finished the rest of the half on a 21-11 spurt. That run cut deep into the Bullets' initial lead as York, after a strong defensive stop to end the first 20 minutes, went into the break down only three at 24-21.
That Gettysburg margin was reduced to a mere one early in the second stanza. Dylan Hoffman scored a scooping lay-up just 23 seconds into the frame as the Spartans suddenly found themselves down only one at 24-23.
However, in what would prove an unfortunate trend for the Green and White, Gettysburg answered with a bucket of their own as they never let the Spartans get over the hump.
York would cut the Bullet advantage to jut one on two more occasions – 37-36 with 12:44 to go and 40-39 with 11:12 to play – but could simply not capture the ever-elusive lead.
After Matt Moley's made jumper at 11:12, the final time York would be down only one, Gettysburg's Derek Brooks canned a three to ignite a 15-3 Bullet run. That nearly six-minute spurt gave the hosts a 55-42 lead with 4:46 to play and they never looked back.
From there, the Spartans could not get their deficit to less than 11 points as Gettysburg would eventually capture the 13-point non-conference triumph.
Alex Zurn paced the Bullet offense with 15 points on 3-for-6 shooting, including a pair of triples. Rookie guard Stephen Poarch notched 11 points for the hosts while Kennedy and Andrew Powers each recorded nine. Powers also added six rebounds and seven assists to his total.
As a team, Gettysburg shot 44.9% from the field (22-for-49) including a tremendous 6-for-14 (42.9%) from three. Prior today's contest, the Bullets had only knocked down six of their 49 attempts from deep.
Hoffman posted 14 points to lead the Spartans on the offensive end. He registered a 5-for-9 performance, including 1-for-3 from three, and canned all three of his free throws. Whaley notched nine for the Spartans while also dishing out four assists and swiping two steals. Moley, who tallied eight points, proved instrumental in the Spartans nearly capturing the lead early in the second half. All of his eight came during the second stanza Spartan run, as he went 4-for-4 from the field.
For the game, York shot, 32.8% from the field (20-61) but only managed to knock down four of their 22 attempts from three.
The Spartans will now look to regroup as they return to action on Wednesday, December 1. York opens up their Capital Athletic Conference schedule on Wednesday, hosting Wesley at the Grumbacher Sport & Fitness Center in an 8:00 pm tip.