Bridgewater, Va. – The Bridgewater College men’s basketball team competed in the home opener in Nininger Hall against Penn St. Mont Alto on Thursday, Nov. 18 and dominated with a final score of 79-58.

The Lions started off the game by acquiring the jump ball, but were unable to score the point. On the return, junior Liam Caswell attempted an assist but the pass rolled out of bounds. Senior Kellen Hodge, on the defense, put on the pressure and forced a bad pass from the Lions. The Eagles gained an inbound pass, but on the return the Lions managed a turnover and scored the first two points of the game. 

Penn St. Mont Alto managed two turnovers, but Caswell was able to capitalize on the turnover and block the shot from behind. On the inbound pass from Mont Alto, Sophomore Alec Topper lunged towards the ball and stole it; giving the Eagles more chances at scoring. The Lions went up for the shot, but it was blocked by Topper, and rebounded by Caswell. Topper sprinted down court for the dunk, but got fouled and tied the game, 2-2. 

The Lions managed to take the lead 7-2, but it did not last for long as first-year Aaron Oates drove into the paint and got the layup. Sophomore Zach Hatter pulled a three pointer, with an assist from first-year Mikey Ayala. Hard work from the Eagles allowed them to enter halftime with a two point lead, new score being 32-30. 

Starting off the second half of the game, senior Andy Pack went for the layup but was fouled and put the Eagles up by three. The Lions run out the shot clock and the Eagles get the ball. First-year Rashod Smith on the return, rushed past the defense and passed it to Pack with an open lane for the layup. Pack put the Eagles up two more points. PSU-MA got a turnover and scored a layup, taking the lead, but soon fell back behind as they fouled Topper and the Eagles took back the lead. 

For a while, the game was head to head, with foul shots or layups being the main point attraction. With an assist from Smith, Topper sank a three and the Eagles took back the lead with fifteen minutes left in the final quarter. The Eagles scrambled for the ball, and they got the advantage. The ball was passed off to Pack and he made a fast break to get the layup, furthering their point lead. Topper then went for the two-pointer, but it was no good. Oates was able to get the rebound and put it back up for a new score of 44-39. 

With one minute and thirty seconds left in the game, Pack got fouled again. Pack, with 20 points overall in the game, scored another two at the free throw. The Eagles ended the game with a 21 point lead against Penn St. Mont Alto, with the final score being 79-58. 

The BC men’s basketball team, now with a record of 2-2, will be back at home on Tuesday, Nov. 23 to compete against Marymount. The game is set to start at 4 p.m.