WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Catholic Cardinals trailed by 21 points after 14 minutes and 14 seconds of game action. The Catholic Cardinals watched a 12-point lead evaporate in the second half as Worcester State punched back to force overtime. All that said, for the first time since 2015, the Catholic Cardinals are headed to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament with a 75-72 victory over Worcester State.

In front of a raucous atmosphere with two key cogs in the machine unavailable due to sickness, Catholic persevered to earn the program's first NCAA Tournament victory in nearly a decade. Enzo Sechi and Jesse Hafemeiester each scored 21 points while Tommy Kelly and Dan Buckley added 16 and 15 respectively to even out a herculean effort from Worcester State's Aaron Nkrumah who totaled 32 points and 12 rebounds for the Lancers. Sechi recorded 13 rebounds and added five assists while Buckley was masterful off the bench, grabbing 14 rebounds and dishing out seven assists to record his first double-double of the season. 

Trailing 30-9 with 5:46 to play in the first half, the Cardinals flipped the switch and ended the half on an 18-2 run, narrowing the gap to five points (32-27) at halftime. Hafemeister scored seven points during the run while Sechi knocked down a massive three to pull Catholic within eight with 2:32 to play. 

A 12-2 run to start the second half extended Catholic's overall run to 30-4 as the Cardinals pulled ahead, taking a 39-34 lead on a Sechi three-pointer. Just moments earlier, it was Sechi who finished at the rim off a slick behind-the-back feed from Buckley to put Catholic in the lead for the first time. 

A 7-0 Catholic run pushed the lead to 49-38 with 10:13 to play as Hafemeister hit a tough mid-range jumper to force a Worcester State timeout. The lead grew as high as 12 after a Kelly bucket with 9:17 left, but the Lancers had some fight left in them. MASCAC Player of the Year Nkrumah took over, hitting eight straight Lancer points to make it a three-point game with 7:23 remaining. Buckley and Jake Timby answered with back-to-back Catholic buckets, but an offensive rebound and putback slam for Nkrumah breathed life into the Lancer bench. 

Sam Dion hit a three with 4:49 left to make it a one possession game, but Sechi answered with another crucial bucket. Zion Hendrix made a three for Worcester State and Dion drew a foul and knocked down both tries to tie the game at 62 with 3:05 left in regulation. Each team scored just one bucket in the final 2:47 with Sechi putting Catholic ahead, but Nkrumah scored on a putback with 28 seconds left to tie the game. Hafemeister's last-second attempt didn't fall nor did Nkrumah's halfcourt heave at the buzzer. 

Worcester State landed the first blow of overtime as Nkrumah scored with 3:39 remaining, but Kelly hit a top-of-the-key three-pointer after a Sechi offensive board to push Catholic ahead with 3:02 to play. Brandon Goris hit a pair of free throws to put Worcester State back on top, but Buckley hit a massive pull-up jumper to put Catholic back in the lead. With 1:55 on the overtime clock, Sechi sent a three-ball through the net to make it a two-possession game. Worcester State would bring it back to two twice more, but a Hafemeister free throw with 21 seconds left was the final point scored in the 75-72 victory. 

Catholic will battle Rowan tomorrow at 5:45 p.m. to decide who will advance to the second weekend on the NCAA Division III Tournament. 

NOTES OF INTEREST

• Catholic is now 17-13 all-time in the Division III Tournament. The Cardinals last NCAA Tournament victory was an 87-80 win over Alvernia in 2015. The last time Catholic played a home NCAA Tournament game was 2013 with a 67-61 victory over Staten Island. 
• Buckley's 14 rebounds ties Blair Mills for the most by a Catholic player in an NCAA Tournament game. Mills grabbed 14 board in an overtime loss to Gwynedd Mercy in 2004. Sechi's 13 boards ties him with four other Cardinal alum for the second-most in an NCAA Tournament game. 
• Tomorrow's matchup will feature two teams with prestigious NCAA Tournament histories. The Cardinals won the 2001 Divison III National Championship while Rowan won the 1996 title.