LA GRANDE, Ore. - The Eastern Oregon Mountaineer men (11-5, 4-4 CCC) held on to defeat the fiesty Corban College Warriors (6-12, 2-7 CCC) 77-72. The Mounties were tested all the way through, but pulled away in the final moments to take home a victory.
The Warriors were ahead for much of the first half and it was only after a last moment Paul Carollo rebound and putback as time expired in the first half, that the Mounties would reclaim the lead going into intermission, 38-37.
The Mounties and Warriors would trade baskets in the second half, but a quick 8-0 run by the Mounties put them in front by ten with under ten minutes to go. Corban fought back and cut the lead to as little as seven with under a minute to go. Senior Rickey Lott entered the game and pressured their team into a turnover, and would end up laying it up with just seconds left to clinch the win.
Senior Kris Groce led the Mounties with a game-high 25 points while classmate Paul Carollo had a double-double with twelve points and fourteen rebounds. Seniors Jeremy Templeton and Neil Fryer each had twelve points on the night.
For Warriors, Wade Douglas had a tremendous night, scoring 24 points on eleven-of-fifteen from the field. Clay Martin chipped in with eighteen points. The Mountaineers will now take on the Cavaliers of Concordia University on Saturday, January 17th. The game will tip-off at 7:30 p.m. PST.