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READING, Pa. - On the shoulders of senior
Justin Plummer, the Lions (20-5) got their revenge on Messiah College (16-9) downing the Falcons by the final score of 73-67 Wednesday evening in the Bollman Center. The Lions will now face off against Lycoming College this Saturday to determine the 2010 Commonwealth Conference Tournament Champion.
Plummer had himself quite the night scoring a career best 12 points, while adding 10 rebounds to earn his first double-double as well. From the field Plummer was a perfect 5-for-5, while at the line he was 2-for-4. Defensively the 6'4” forward was dominant in the paint leading the Lions in both blocks (2) and steals (2).
This Saturday's championship game will be the first for the Lions since 2005. In that year the Lions won both the regular season and tournament championship, and advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament where they were eventually defeated by King's College, 57-55. Wednesday's win also gives the Lions their first 20 win season that year, and marks the fifth time in program history where the Lions have recorded 20 or more wins.
Going into Wednesday's match-up the Lions truly had revenge on their minds following Saturday's tough loss to the Falcons in their regular season finale. Albright came out firing in the opening minutes with an early 8-3 run.
Messiah, with the help of leading scorer Jamie Yoder would never allow the Lions to jump out to a double-figure lead, despite Albright's many attempts. Yoder eventually ended the night with a game-best 22 points, and was joined by teammate Kyle Snyder who had 15 points and 12 rebounds.
At only one point in the first half, were the Falcons able to jump ahead of Albright. However their efforts were not enough as the red and white battled back to close out the half with a six point lead.
Giving Albright the last minute boost was the trio of
Zac Shaeffer,
Matt Ashcroft, and
Andre Murphy. On the night Shaeffer tallied 16 points, with Ashcroft adding 12 of his own. The Falcons made the junior shooters work for every point Wednesday night as they held the duo to only three made baskets from behind the arc.
Following the break, Albright would gain some serious speed jumping out to their first double-digit lead by the midway point.
Adam Van Zelst made it a 12-point game minutes later on a huge three-pointer from deep in three-point land.
The Lions largest lead of the night (13 points) would be the result of back-to-back free throws by Ashcroft at the 3:13 mark. However that comfortable Albright lead did not last as the Falcons clawed their way back with less than a minute to play.
On back-to-back three pointers, Messiah cut Albright's lead to four with 48 seconds left in the contest.
Looking to get the ball back, the Falcons sent Albright to the foul line to prevent any last minute field goals or three-point attempts. In what is usually their strong suit, the Lions struggled in the final seconds at the charity strip, but with a free throw from
Jeff Sparrow and Ashcroft the Lions were able to hang on.
The Lions will face off against Lycoming this Saturday with a start still to be determined. Lycoming defeated the Blue Jays of Elizabethtown College by the final score of 90-81 to advance to this year's championship game.
Saturday's match-up will be the rubber-match for the two teams as they split the regular season with a 1-1 record.
Tickets for Saturday's contest are priced at $6 for adults, $4 seniors, $2 for students, and children under the age of six get in free.