The Oglethorpe men's basketball team started their season out on a positive note against the visiting Warren Wilson Owls Saturday afternoon at Dorough Field House. The Stormy Petrels used a big run bridging halftime, outscoring the Owls 31-12 over an 11-minute span to put the game away and improve to 1-0 on the season.

The Petrels got a double-double from junior forward Will Koch on the afternoon, as he scored 15 points on 7 of 11 from the field and grabbed 12 rebounds. Junior guard Dimetri Chambers made his Oglethorpe debut and recorded 12 points with three assists and three steals, while junior guard Lane Foster added 12 points on 2 of 3 from long distance. Foster record three assists, as well.

Warren Wilson actually outpaced Oglethorpe from the field, outshooting them 41.5 to 41.2 percent overall and 39.1 to 24.2 percent from beyond the three-point arc. However, the Petrels dominated the Owls on the glass, ourebounding them 48-29 and outscoring them 12-3 in second chance points. Oglethorpe also outscored Warren Wilson 40-18 in the paint and 13-4 on the fastbreak, and went 9 for 11 from the charity stripe while the Owls went 2 for 12.

Oglethorpe got off to a 19-8 start over the opening 10 minutes of the game, but Warren Wilson came back with a 9-2 run to pull to within four at 21-17 with 5:48 left in the half. However, the Petrels then embarked on their 31-12 run, outscoring the Owls 13-6 over the remainder of the period and 18-6 over the first 6:40 of the second. It gave the Petrels their largest lead at 52-29 with 13:17 remaining. Oglethorpe cruised to the victory from there, as the Owls cut it to a 14-point game with 9:45 remaining but the Petrels quickly pushed their advantage back out to 19.

"I thought we had some first-game jitters and didn't shoot the ball the way we typically do," said Oglethorpe head coach Philip Ponder, "but we made up for it with really good energy and by controlling the glass. I also like that we had 17 assists on our 28 made baskets. It's early, and we still have a lot of things to work on, but it's always nice to start the season with a W."

The Petrels will be back in action Nov. 16 at 1 p.m., when they travel to Mount Berry to take on Bob Jones in Berry's Vikings Tipoff Tournament. They'll face Warren Wilson again on Nov. 17 at that event.