SCRANTON, Pa.—Senior forwards Ethan Eichhorst (Drums, Pa./Hazleton Area) and Justin Grotevant (Canadensis, Pa./Pocono Mountain East) combined for 42 points and 10 rebounds to lead Misericordia University to an 84-71 victory over The University of Scranton in non-conference action Tuesday evening at the Long Center.

The Cougars also received 14 points apiece from sophomore guard Matt Greene (Hakendauqua, Pa.Whitehall) and junior forward Steve Artzerounian (Vernon, Conn./Rockville) and 10 points from senior guard Jeff Slanovec (Easton, Pa./Freedom) to improve to 4-0 on the season.

Junior guard Travis Farrell (Middletown, NJ/Christian Brothers Academy) led the Royals, now 2-1, with 23 points on 9 of 12 shooting from the field and senior forward Matt Swaback (Kingston, Pa./Wyoming Seminary) finished with 16 points, four rebounds, and two blocks.

Both teams were on fire in the first half.  The Royals, behind 15 points by Farrell and 14 from Swaback, shot nearly 61 percent from the field but were only able to scratch out a 42-41 lead.  Eichhorst had 13 points, Greene nine and Slanovec eight as the Cougars connected on nearly 52 percent of their attempts to withstand the Royals' knock-out punch.

The second half, however, was all Misericordia.

Grotevant took over in the opening nine minutes, scoring 13 points to spark a 24-9 run that gave the Cougars a 14-push cushion that was never seriously threatened the rest of the way.  

Misericordia continued its hot shooting in the second half, burying 14 of 27 attempts (51.9 percent) to finish nearly 52 percent for the game.  The Cougars also knocked down 11 of 21 3-point field goals attempts (52.4 percent) and were 13 of 17 from the free throw line (76.5 percent).

Scranton, on the other hand, cooled down considerably after intermission, making just 10 of 29 field goal attempts (34.5 percent) and finished a respectable 47.4 percent for the game.

The win was the second straight by the Cougars over the Royals and their first at the Long Center since December 15, 2003.

In three games, Farrell is shooting 77.4 percent from the field (24 of 31).  His 23-point effort tonight was three shy of his career-high of 26 against Penn College of Technology on January 3, 2010, at the Long Center.

Scranton will return to action this Monday, November 28, against Ramapo College in Mahwah, New Jersey, beginning at 7:00 p.m.  The game will be carried live by WUSR, 99.5 FM, and over the Internet at www.wusrfm.com.


Newspaper Box Score
MISERICORDIA 84, SCRANTON 71

MISERICORDIA (4-0)
Ethan Eichhorst 9-17 3-3 22; Justin Grotevant 7-8 4-4 20; Matt Greene 4-5 2-2 14; Steve Artzerounian 6-10 1-2 14; Jeff Slanovec 3-11 2-4 10; Chris Undersinger 1-2 1-2 4; Anthony Sergio 0-2 0-0 0; Sean Bieski 0-2 0-0 0; Joe Busacca 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 30-58 13-17 84.

SCRANTON (2-1)
Travis Farrell 9-12 4-6 23; Matt Swaback 6-10 1-1 16; Luke Hawk 1-4 4-8 6; Ross Danzig 2-5 1-2 5; Tommy Morgan 2-4 1-1 5; Tim Lavelle 1-6 2-2 4; Mark Bevacqua 2-3 0-0 4; Michael Barr 1-3 0-0 2; Dan Hilferty 1-2 0-0 2; Nick Jaskula 1-2 0-0 2; Edmond O'Connell 1-6 0-0 2; Kyle Ranck 0-0 0-0 0. Totals  27-57 13-20 71.

Misericordia..................   42   42  -   84
Scranton......................   41   30  -   71

3-point goals--Misericordia 11-21 (Matt Greene 4-4; Jeff Slanovec 2-7; Justin Grotevant 2-3; Steve Artzerounian 1-1; Ethan Eichhorst 1-2; Chris Undersinger 1-2; Anthony Sergio 0-2), Scranton 4-15 (Matt Swaback 3-5; Travis Farrell 1-1; Ross Danzig 0-1; Tommy Morgan 0-1; Tim Lavelle 0-4; Michael Barr 0-1; Dan Hilferty 0-1; Edmond O'Connell 0-1). Fouled out--Misericordia-None, Scranton-Mark Bevacqua. Rebounds--Misericordia 29 (Ethan Eichhorst 6), Scranton 30 (Travis Farrell 5). Assists--Misericordia
19 (Matt Greene 7), Scranton 14 (Ross Danzig 5). Total fouls--Misericordia
17, Scranton 17. Technical fouls--Misericordia-None, Scranton-None. A-375