Sophomore Kinard Dozier shared the team lead with 15 points,
canning two free-throws with seven seconds left to ice the
win.
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Ravens open home-and-home against
Skyhawks with key road victory
Boxscore
EASTON,
Mass. (January 31, 2009) - Franklin Pierce matched a
season-low with nine turnovers and held off Stonehill College,
ranked No. 10 in this week's NABC Division II poll, to post a 60-59
upset in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball action at Merkert
Gymnasium this afternoon.
Sophomore guards Kinard
Dozier (Dedham, Mass./The Winchendon School) and
Jeff Manchester (Gorham, Maine/Gorham) each led
Franklin Pierce with 15 points apiece in the victory. Dozier, who
clinched the win with two free-throws with seven seconds to play,
made 5-of-13 shots from the field, including 1-of-3 from
three-point range, and converted all four free-throw attempts for
his 15 points to go with five rebounds, three assists and three
steals. Manchester buried 5-of-8 three-pointers for his 15 points,
adding three assists.
Senior Rimas Varanauskas
(Kaunas, Lithuania/The Winchendon School) added 13 points
off the bench, shooting 5-for-7 from the field, including 1-for-2
three's, and converting 2-of-4 free-throw attempts to go with five
rebounds. Junior Terrell Ray (Brooklyn, N.Y./Fort
Hamilton) chipped in eight points and four rebounds.
Sophomore Jeff Manchester also netted 15 points, draining 5-of-8
three-pointers.
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Junior Randall Stallworth
(Toms River, N.J./Monsignor Donovan) led
Stonehill with a game-high 28 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the
field, including 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, to go with four
rebounds and four assists. Classmate A.J. Rudowitz (Monroe
Township, N.J./Monroe Township) added 13 points, including
the 1,000th of his career, a game-high eight rebounds
(four offensive), four steals and three blocked shots. Senior
Matt Hall (Springfield, Mass./Springfield Central)
posted eight points, while classmate Colin Scanlon
(Centreville, Va./Flint Hill) chipped in eight rebounds
and five assists.
Franklin Pierce finished shooting
40-percent (22-for-55) from the field, including 9-for-21 (42.9%)
from three-point range (4-9, 44.4% - 2nd). Stonehill
made 44-percent (22-for-50) of its shots from the field, after
hitting at 50% (11-for-22) in the first half, and converted 8-of-18
(44.4%) three-point attempts. The Ravens posted a commanding 20-7
advantage in points off turnovers, committing a season-low matching
nine miscues, compared to 15 turnovers for the Skyhawks.
Franklin Pierce rallied from a
six-point deficit (52-46) after a Rudowitz layup with 6:09 to play.
Manchester sparked a 10-0 spurt with a three-pointer before
Varanauskas scored a layup and Dozier put the Ravens on top for
good (53-52) with a pair of free-throws with 3:48 to go. Manchester
buried another three to cap the run and put the Ravens up four
(56-52) with 2:53 remaining.
Stallworth pulled Stonehill back
within a possession (56-52) with 2:38 left, and both teams missed
on their next possessions. Ray pulled down a key offensive rebound
and converted the put back to regain Franklin Pierce's four-point
cushion (58-54) with 56-seconds remaining. Rudowitz made two
free-throws at the other end to pull the Skyhawks back within two
(58-56) with 47-seconds left, but Dozier grabbed another offensive
rebound for the Ravens after Manchester missed on a corner jumper.
Dozier was fouled and drained both free-throws with seven ticks
left to ice the victory. Stallworth capped the game with his sixth
three of the night, but it was too little too late and the Ravens
claimed the upset win and snapped a three-game slide.
Franklin Pierce was in the game
from the outset, and a bright start put the Ravens up 11 (22-11)
after a Manchester three with 8:34 to go in the opening half.
Stonehill rallied with a 14-3 run to force a 27-27 tie after a
Rudowitz jumper with 2:30 left in the frame. Stallworth added a
pair of three's during the stretch.
Franklin Pierce carried a two-point
lead into halftime (31-29) after a Varanauskas layup and extended
it back to five (34-29) when Manchester opened the second half with
a three. An 11-0 Stonehill run over less than a four minute span
turned a four-point deficit (38-34) into a seven-point advantage
(45-38) after a Hall three with 11:38 to play. Stallworth canned
back-to-back three's during that stretch.
Franklin Pierce (10-10, 7-8 NE-10)
and Stonehill (16-4, 11-4 NE-10) meet again for the second half of
their home-and-home matchup on Wednesday, February 4, at the
Franklin Pierce Fieldhouse at 7:30 p.m. That game will be broadcast
live on WEEI 93.5 Keene.
