Quakers fall to ONU 85-79

Three Quakers reach double figures in loss

[BOX SCORE]

January 24, 2005

WILMINGTON, Ohio — The Wilmington College Quakers out-scored the Ohio Northern Polar Bears 46-42 in the second half, but a 10-point halftime deficit was too much to overcome in an 85-79 loss in OAC play on Monday evening.

The Quaker offense started strong, as the hosts opened a five-point, 10-5 lead four minutes into the game. ONU struck back with a 18-2 run, taking an 11-point lead six minutes later. ONU kept their lead for the remainder of the half, increasing it to as many as 19 with 3:20 to play before the Green and White ended the half on a 12-3 run, giving the game its 43-33 halftime score.

The Polar Bears led by as many as 14 in the second stanza before the Quakers fought back, using a 13-0 run, cutting the deficit to one with 9:54 to play in the game. The Quakers eventually tied the game on three separate occasions, but were unable to go over the hump to grab a lead, as the Polar Bears hit 9-of-10 free throws in the final two minutes of the game to ice the contest.

David Guy (Webb City, MO/Webb City) led the way with a team-high 22 points while Eric Stirling (Brooklyn, NY/LaSalle Academy) scored 19 and Deon Short (Cincinnati/Mt. Healthy) added 18 in the losing effort. Short and Stirling each pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, while Billy Nelson (Cincinnati/Shroder Paideia Academy) dished out three assists.

ONU was led by Greg Badenhop's game-high 23 points while Kyle Gehle and Charlie Kelly scored 16 and 13 points respectively off of the bench.

With the loss, the Quakers fall to 8-9 on the year and 4-6 in the OAC while Ohio Northern improves to 9-8 overall and 6-4 in league play.

The next game for the Green and White is on Wednesday, January 26 when the team plays host to the Muskies of Muskingum College with tip-off set for 7:30 p.m.