ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. – Widespread contributions put Elizabethtown ahead by 10 with 4:33 left in Monday night's non-conference game against Shenandoah, and the hosts would need all of that advantage and then some to withstand a furious rally from the Hornets. The Blue Jays got some key stops late, holding on for their third straight victory, 66-63.
The lead traded hands five times in the first half, before Xavier Alston's layup with two seconds brought Shenandoah even, 34-34, at the half. The Hornets (1-7) led by two early in the second, but sophomore forward Josh Eden followed up a Matt Lapkowicz miss and then stepped into a jumper with 15:34 remaining to put the Blue Jays (4-5) ahead 41-38.
Eden gave the Jays eight points and a team-high eight rebounds in 14 minutes. Six of his points came after halftime.
In a game defined by its see-saw nature, one big run by Elizabethtown nearly closed the script.
Two Shaquille Rodney free throws closed the Hornets to within a point, 41-40, with 13:58 to go, but it was all Blue Jays over the next 3:19. Lapkowicz connected on a pair of long 3-pointers. Lee Eckert stuffed Brandon Pressley and then finished off a fastbreak at the other end. On the very next possession, the senior center again ran the floor, converting a Phil Wenger steal and dish into two more points to close a 12-0 run that put the Jays up 53-40.
By that point, E-town's early game frustrations were all but forgotten. Shenandoah forced turnovers on the Blue Jays' opening three possessions and turned them into six quick points. Outside of a trey from Landmark Conference Athlete of the Week Tyler Simpkiss, Elizabethtown could get nothing else in the opening three minutes as they went down 11-3.
Five points from Joe Bodnar helped drive an 8-0 run that was finished by a Wenger steal and lay in to tie the game at 11 5:17 into the contest.
Elizabethtown kept its lead above five points following the 12-0 run and had it back up to 10, 61-51, with 4:33 to go. This time, however, it was Shenandoah throwing a scare into the Thompson Gymnasium crowd, as Malcolm Clark started an 11-1 run for the visitors that tied the game at 62 with 79 seconds to play.
Clark and Jared Carithers (game-high 20 points) accounted for 10 points in the run.
Jimi Starks made 1-of-2 free throws to knot the game at 62, but on Elizabethtown's next possession Jake Sweger found Simpkiss for a layup as the Jays went back in front with 1:04 left.
Two Shenandoah turnovers offset a missed shot and three missed free throws by the Blue Jays.
Sweger would hit 1-of-2 to put the Blue Jays up 66-63 with 1.7 seconds to go, but Carithers was unable to get a shot off after the Hornets tried to heave the ball the length of the court.
Simpkiss paced Elizabethtown in scoring for the third game in a row with 15 points. The senior from Dover, Del., is now averaging 18.7 points per game during his team's three-game winning streak. Simpkiss had six rebounds, two assists and a steal in 28 minutes.
Eckert posted 10 points and five rebounds, while Sweger had eight points and seven boards. The Blue Jays were plus-11 on the glass, 44-33.
Wenger, bidding to become the program's all-time steals leader, showed why he is the team's floor general once again. He matched a season-high with six steals and delivered three assists. Wenger is riding a streak of six consecutive multi-assist games and four straight multi-steal efforts. With 217 career steals, Wenger is now just 18 shy of tying Damian Burnside's school record of 235.
Carithers (20) and Clark (13) led Shenandoah's offense. Clark was 6-of-7 from the floor and played a game-high 34 minutes. Alston pitched in with a double-double of 11 points and 12 rebounds for the visitors.
The Blue Jays concluded the 2014 calendar year with a win and will wait until Jan. 3, 2015, to play their next game. Elizabethtown will join DeSales, McDaniel and New Jersey City in the Red Robin Holiday Tournament at DeSales University Jan. 3-4. The Jays face the host Bulldogs in their opening game.
