WINCHESTER, Va. - Visiting Methodist University secured a home game for itself in the upcoming USA South Conference men's basketball Tournament with a 61-58 victory over Shenandoah Saturday evening in the regular season finale.

Methodist (10-15, 5-7 USA South) finishes fourth in the league by downing the Hornets (4-20, 2-10).

Shenandoah finishes sixth with the loss and will travel to No. 3 Christopher Newport on Tuesday for a 7:30 contest.

MU, which needed a win to host, takes onGreensboro in the No. 4 vs No. 5 game.

The Hornets had their chances in the contest, holding a three-point lead as late as the 2:28 mark only to see the Monarchs seize control with six straight points in a 46-second span.

Marc Slade gave the visitors the lead for good by hitting a driving layup with 1:04 remaining, and after a Mark Jernigan steal, Kyle Combs put the final nail in the Hornets coffin by converting a three-point-play 19 seconds after Slade's bucket.

Shenandoah then turned the ball over in its frontcourt and the Hornets never seriously threatened again.

Senior Mitch Dudley, playing in his final home game, made it a one-possession game by draining a baseline jumper with four seconds left, but it was too little, too late.

Methodist did miss two foul shots with three seconds left, but stole an outlet pass to secure the victory.

Jernigan led all scorers with 17 with Combs adding 15 points and 13 rebounds.

Kevin Kline had 16 for SU with Dudley adding 10 points and 11 boards.

The Monarchs dominated on the glass, pulling down 47 of the game's 80 rebounds.