Box Score

WEST CHESTER, Pa. – In a game that featured 55 combined fouls and enough cowbells to make a dairy farmer blush, it was a three-pointer by redshirt sophomore Jordan Stasyszyn with 1:18 to play on Wednesday night from Hollinger Field House that helped the Shippensburg men's basketball team re-gain the lead and ultimately earn a 63-61 victory over West Chester.

From the opening tip, the two teams quickly realized that the game would be officiated close to the vest. By halftime, each team had been whistled for 13 fouls while a combined total of eight players between the squads had picked up two or more fouls.

As a result, the pace of the game was a virtual standstill throughout, with neither team able to develop much of a transition game or a semblance of rhythm. SU faced a barrage of noise each time it went to the free-throw line in the first half thanks to a fan giveaway in which select students received cowbells, but the Red Raiders still proved to be the better team from the charity stripe in the contest. SU shot 66 percent for the game (21-of-32) while West Chester managed a proficiency of just 57 percent (17-of-30).

Shippensburg (9-11, 2-5 PSAC East) trailed by nine points with 10 minutes to play but began to creep back into the game on the strength of clutch free throws and timely three-pointers. Trailing by seven points with 6:27 to play, the Red Raiders strung together five points from the free-throw line while earning two defensive stops in between.

West Chester (13-7, 2-5 PSAC East) was able to get a bit of an offensive rhythm thanks to Ralph Hegamin, who almost single-handedly helped the Golden Rams get a victory and slowed several of SU's comeback attempts with second-chance opportunities and open looks in the paint. Hegamin had 19 points and 19 rebounds, including seven boards on the offensive glass.

Yet with 2:47 to go and SU still down three points, redshirt sophomore Will Royal began to take over, making two free throws to reduce the deficit to one point. After being limited to six scoreless minutes in the first half due to foul trouble, Royal finished the game with a team-high 13 points, including 7-of-8 from the free-throw line.

A foul by sophomore Dane Lauber put Hegamin on the line with 2:07 to play but the power forward made just 1-of-2 at the line to keep Shippensburg within two points. Royal answered at the other end with a long jumper to tie the score at 58-58 with 1:51 left.

Golden Ram point guard Sandy Tanner put the home squad back up two points with a jumper on the next possession, but Stasyszyn then hit his crucial three-pointer to put the Red Raiders up by a point. After a timeout, Elie Daniel tried a long jumper with 30 seconds to go that was no good and the rebound ended up with Royal.

However, junior Jaren Gembe forced a pass up the court that was intercepted, putting the ball into West Chester's possession with 22 seconds to go and plenty of time to design a potential game-tying or game-winning play. The Golden Rams called another timeout to draw up their plan.

With the shot clock turned off, West Chester opted to go for immediate points instead of letting time tick away. Kenneth St. George tried a running jumper that fell short and Gembe grabbed the rebound. He was sent to the free-throw line just five seconds after the timeout and made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to give Shippensburg a two-point cushion with 17 seconds left.

In a manner only befitting of the contest, Lauber was whistled on the ensuing possession for a defensive non-shooting foul about 18 feet away from the hoop, giving Daniel a chance in the double bonus to tie the game with 10 seconds to go. However, Daniel missed the first free throw but converted the second, once again making the game a one-point affair.

On the ensuing in-bounds play, West Chester forgot to guard Royal, who was standing at midcourt. He caught the pass and thought about trying to run out the clock but then drove to the hoop and was fouled hard. Royal made 1-of-2, and the Golden Rams had one more chance to tie the game but could only manage an erratic layup attempt before the horn that fell short, The final whistle ultimately signaled the end of SU's four-game losing streak to West Chester that dated back to 2006.  

The offensive production of sophomore Craig Van Scyoc proved once again to be a huge benefit for Shippensburg. Van Scyoc was held silent for most of the second half but still finished with 12 points and five rebounds. He also made all four of his free-throw attempts. Stasyszyn had his most important game to date with 11 points, two rebounds and two steals in 20 minutes off the bench.

While Lauber was one of seven players in the game who committed four or more fouls, his greatest feat was his strong passing down the stretch. Lauber set up several key buckets in the second half for Shippensburg and totaled a game-high five assists while committing just one turnover in 20 minutes.

Shippensburg continues its three-game road trip on Saturday from Decker Gymnasium with a 3 p.m. tipoff against Mansfield. It will be the start of the second half of divisional play.