WASHINGTON – Behind a career-high 29 points from Shawn Holmes, CUA outlasted Gwynedd-Mercy 77-72 on Wednesday in the quarterfinals of the ECAC Tournament.  Holmes sank 8 of 14 shots and added 7 assists and 3 rebounds in leading the Cardinals to their 18th win of the season.

CUA had a rough start to this one, falling behind 12-0 in the first 4:45 and trailing 36-31 at halftime.  The Cardinals got it together in the second half though, outscoring the Griffins 46-36 in the final 20 minutes.

CUA was actually down 10 with 16:24 to play in the game following a Dan DelConte jumper, but he Cardinals battled back and pulled to within three on a Nelson Mendez 3-pointer with 14:35 on the clock.

Holmes' trifecta at the 12:46 mark pulled CUA even at 50, but Gwynedd-Mercy ran off five straight to take a 55-50 lead with 12:10 remaining.

Brandon Sharp's bucket with 7:56 to play put the visitors in front by eight, but CUA responded with a 6-0 run to get to within two with 6:11 on the clock.

A DelConte 3-pointer at the 4:36 mark gave the Griffins a seven-point advantage, but Steve Limberiou connected from downtown on CUA's next possession, and the freshman added two more free throws on the possession after that to make it a two-point game with 3:26 remaining.

Another three by Limberiou, this one coming with 2:49 on the clock, gave CUA its first lead since 8:19 remained in the first half. 

The Cardinals forced a miss by Gwynedd-Mercy and Limberiou sank a jumper down the other end to make it a three-point Cardinals lead.

CUA's defense continued to make life rough for the Griffins, forcing two more missed shots, and a pair of Holmes free throws with a second to play sealed the win.

Limberiou finished with 10 points, while Mendez added 10 of his own.  Kearney pulled down 12 rebounds and added two steals and a block.  The Cardinals sank 19 of 24 free throws (79.2%) and shot 50% from downtown (10-20).

DelConte netted a team-high 20 points for the Griffins, while Brandyn Wims added 16 and seven assists.  After sinking 50% of its 3-pointers in the first half, Gwynedd-Mercy connected on only 2-11 in the second half (18%).

After falling behind early, CUA was able to pull within seven on Holmes' jumper at the 13:02 mark of the first half, but the Griffins responded with back-to-back 3-pointers to open up a 13-point lead with 12:30 to play before halftime.

Two Holmes free throws, followed by a 3-pointer by the junior, pulled CUA to within four, and after Derek Puhalski sank two free throws, the Cardinals were down just two.

Jared Prince's 3-pointer at the 8:19 mark gave CUA its first lead of the night, but Gwynedd-Mercy scored seven of the next nine points to pull in front by four.

Brandon Sharp's jumper with 1:29 on the clock put Gwynedd-Mercy ahead by five, which is how the score remained at intermission.

CUA now moves onto the semifinal round of the ECAC Tournament, which will take place on Saturday, March 3.  Opponent, location and time are to be determined, based on what happened in the other quarterfinal games on Wednesday.