Grantham, PA - The Messiah College Falcons (12-10, 8-8) were in the driver's seat for almost 35 minutes of play Saturday evening, until the Dutchmen (9-14, 6-10)  turned things upside-down with less than five minutes to play.  The Dutchmen went on a 7-0 and 9-0 scoring surge in the final minutes to pull away and complete the 81-72 upset.

Coming into the game, the Falcons were tied for fourth in the conference standings and needed the win to be one step closer to defending their 2012 Commonwealth Conference Championship.  Unfortunately for the Falcons, the Dutchmen had other plans. 

The Falcons put together a solid offensive and defensive effort in the first half, but failed to meet the same standard in the second half. 

In the opening 10 minutes of play, it seemed like everything the Falcons shot found the bottom of the net.  In fact, the Falcons were an impressive 13-for-15 (86.7%) from the field in the early stages of the game.  From behind the three-point arc, Messiah was nearly perfect as they drained five threes in just eight minutes, scoring 15 of their 31 points from downtown.

With an 11 point deficit and 10 minutes left in the first half, the Dutchmen did their best to fight back.  LVC's Danny Brooks and Ryan Kinard combined for three consecutive triples, which went unanswered by the Falcons, to pull within two points.  The Dutchmen wouldn't get any closer to taking the lead, though, as the Falcons used both their sharp-shooting and hard-driving inside game to extend their lead.  Junior Brad Bolen and senior Dan Mosley both hit triples in the least three minutes of the half to regain the 11 point lead going into halftime.

Bolen, who led all scorers in the half with 17 points, was a perfect 3-for-3 from long range.  Sophomore Zac Hoy (1-for-1) was also perfect from three.

"We had early success on offense," head coach Rick Van Pelt said. "Unfortunately for us, we tend to get too quick, even force our shots when they fall so easily.  This really hurt us in the second half.  We struggled to put together 40 minutes of solid offensive and defensive play tonight., it's as simple as that."

The second half proved to be a very different story for the Falcons.  Despite holding onto a double-digit lead in the first seven minutes, the Falcons' defense became a bit sloppy and they quickly accumulated fouls. 

With 9:11 to play, the Falcons found themselves with seven team fouls, putting the Dutchmen in the 1-and-1. 

In the next three minutes, the Falcons picked up their eighth, ninth, and tenth team fouls to put LVC in the double bonus.  Unfortunately for the Falcons, the Dutchmen were stoic from the free throw line all night, shooting 100% (6-for-6) in the first half and 73.9% (17-for-23) in the second half.  LVC scored nine points from the charity stripe while in the double bonus.

Another big difference in the second half was the performance of LVC's Kevin Agnew.  After scoring only five points in the first half, Agnew scored the Dutchmen's first seven points of the half and went on to lead all scorers with 28 points, but his most important bucket came with 5:21 to play.  Agnew hit only his second three of the night to tie things up at 62.  

The momentum was beginning to shift.

 Senior Derek Mosley responded with a triple of his own, but Dutchmen standout Danny Brooks would hit back-to-back threes to take the 68-67 lead.

With 2:30 to play, the Falcons committed yet another foul, sending Agnew to the line.  An 83.5% free throw shooter, Agnew hit both for the 70-67 lead. 

The Falcons responded quickly, wasting no time moving the ball up the court and into their offense.  Hoy found the open slot through the right side and drove to the basket, getting fouled on the way.  This was the opportunity that the Falcons needed to cut down their deficit, but Hoy missed his first shot of the 1-and-1 and LVC came up with the defensive rebound.

Agnew would strike again in the next possession, this time driving middle and pulling up just beyond the free throw line, sending a floater toward the rim for two points.  After a Falcon timeout, Hoy took the in-bounds pass and drove left, drawing another foul.  Stepping to the free throw line, Hoy redeemed himself by hitting both shots.  With a three point deficit and only 1:01 to play, the Falcons had to make the most of their final possessions in order to come away with the win.  

Messiah applied full court pressure on the Dutchmen, trying to force a turnover and regain control of the ball, but senior Christian DeVan's tight defense was considered a foul, sending LVC's Sam Diaz to the line and giving DeVan his fifth and final foul of the night.  Diaz, who was 0-for-4 from the charity stripe until that moment, made both free throws, extending the Dutchmen's lead 74-69.  

The Falcons pushed the ball up the court, looking for a three, but Bolen's long-range shot was off the mark.  LVC's Brooks grabbed the defensive rebound and kicked it out to Agnew, who was quickly swarmed by the Falcons who quickly fouled to stop play.  Agnew made both free throws, putting the Dutchmen up by seven.  After another missed shot by messiah, LVC stormed ahead for a fast break layup, dashing any hope of a Falcon comeback.  The Dutchmen went on to score three more points and seal the 81-72 victory.

Messiah had several offensive chances in the final minute of play, but couldn't find the same mojo from the first half.  In fact, the Falcons were outscored 9-0 in that time frame, missing two triples, a layup, and a baseline jumper.

Despite their disappointment, the Falcons saw solid performances from several key players.  Bolen, Hoy, and junior Taylor Groff each scoring above their average points per game.  Bolen led the Falcons with 19 points, while Hoy added 18 and Groff contributed 13.  As a team, Messiah shot 49.1% (28-for-57) from the field and 39.3% (11-for-28) from three.  They were 5-of-8 (62.5%) from the free throw line.

With the loss, the Falcons' playoff future is in their own hands.  

"Now it's simple," Van Pelt said.  "We need to put together a solid, sound game where we are working together and playing with energy.  If we don't do that, we open the door for our opponents and we won't be successful.  We need to win at Widener and win against Alvernia next weekend if we want to have a chance to move forward."

The Falcons travel to Widener University on Tuesday and will host Alvernia University next Saturday.  The mid-week game is set to begin at 8:00 p.m. and Saturday's game will begin at 4:00 p.m.