Men’s Basketball Notches 2-1 Week; Wins Pair At Hoops 4 Healing Classic
The Malone College men’s basketball team suffered a 91-69 loss at home to NAIA Division II #19 Mount Vernon Nazarene University on Tuesday night as the visiting Cougars drained 13 three-pointers and connected on nearly 60% of their overall shots from the field. The Pioneers then hosted the Hoops 4 Healing Classic over the weekend and came away from the two-day event with a pair of hard-fought victories. Malone opened play on Friday evening with a 71-66 triumph over the University of Northwestern Ohio. Then on Saturday, in the event’s final contest, the squad notched an 80-67 win against visiting Point Park (PA) University. Following the 2-1 week, the Pioneers’ overall record now stands at 7-4 (0-0 AMC North).
In Tuesday’s contest with MVNU, the visitors led 44-34 at halftime and then opened the second stanza on a 21-2 run to take a commanding 65-36 advantage. Malone trimmed the enormous deficit to 78-61 with 6:51 remaining but that was as close as the hosts would get as the Cougars rolled to the convincing victory. The Pioneers hit 27 of their 56 (48.2%) shot attempts in the contest but converted on just one of 12 (8.3%) three-pointers and trailed 32-27 in total rebounds. Senior forward Tyler Renner (Garaway H.S.) and senior guard Ben Carver (Shelby H.S.) paced Malone with 11 points apiece. Senior center Shane Humphrey (Loudonville H.S.) added nine points and seven rebounds while sophomore center Ted Lawver (Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy) came off the bench to tally nine points.
Against Northwestern Ohio on Friday, the Pioneers led 65-55 with just under two minutes remaining in the contest before the Racers launched a late rally, trimming the deficit to 68-65 with 26 seconds left on the clock. Northwestern Ohio was unable to get any closer, though, as a break-away lay-up on Malone’s next possession by sophomore guard Linc Rottman (Triway H.S.) stretched the hosts’ lead back to five points at 70-65. Carver then connected on one of two free throws in the final seconds to secure the 71-66 victory. The Racers, who are competing in their first season of intercollegiate basketball, held a 39-38 advantage in total rebounds but struggled from the field throughout the game, connecting on just 21 of 64 (32.8%) shot attempts. The Pioneers, meanwhile, knocked down nearly 50% (27-56) of their shots in the contest and were paced by Renner’s game-high 24 points (9-14 FG, 2-3 3PT FG, 4-4 FT). The 6’6” senior forward also pulled down eight rebounds and blocked four shots. Carver followed with 17 points and six assists while Humphrey snagged 11 boards.
Saturday’s contest with Point Park was tied 37-37 at halftime. However, Malone was able to outscore Point Park 20-7 over the first eight minutes of the second frame to take a substantial 57-44 lead. The visitors fought back, closing the gap to 70-65 with just over two minutes remaining before Malone cemented the win by sinking all eight of its free throws over the final 90 seconds. Point Park shot 31.3% (21 of 67) for the game and made just nine of 34 (26.5%) attempts in the second half. Malone controlled the paint with a 49-35 advantage in total rebounds. Carver led five Pioneers in double-figures with 23 points (5-9 FG, 3-6 3PT FG, 10-13 FT). He also registered four steals and six rebounds. Renner posted 11 points, 10 boards, five assists and three blocks while junior guard Andrew Weaver (Hiland H.S.) tallied 10 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. In addition, Carver was named the Steve Loy Player of the Game for Malone.
In the Hoops 4 Healing Classic’s other contests, Walsh University defeated Point Park in overtime on Friday by the final score of 99-92. The Cavaliers then topped Northwestern Ohio on Saturday 83-53.
The Hoops 4 Healing Classic takes place each year, at Malone College or Walsh University and at Lake High School, to help raise funds for liver disease research and organ donation awareness. The annual basketball classic is one of several yearly events held by the “Hoops 4 Healing” Foundation, an organization committed to the prevention, treatment, and eventual curing of liver diseases through research, education and advocacy.
This week, Malone (7-4, 0-0 AMC North) will host the McKinley Grand Hotel Classic Thursday through Saturday. The Pioneers will open play on Thursday evening with a 7:30 p.m. contest against Wilberforce University (4-4, 0-0 AMC South). Christendom (VA) College (2-6) will then travel to Canton on Friday for a 7:30 p.m. match-up with Wilberforce. Malone and Christendom will conclude the Classic on Saturday afternoon with a 3:00 p.m. game.
This week’s opponents: Wilberforce- The Pioneers hold a 19-12 advantage in the all-time series between the two schools. Malone has won four of the last five meetings with the Bulldogs. The squads split last year’s contests as Wilberforce won 84-74 (at Wilberforce) early in the season before the Pioneers took the second game by an 86-69 final (at Malone). Christendom- Saturday’s contest will mark the first-ever meeting between the Pioneers and the Crusaders.
Pioneer Notes: Ben Carver leads the team in scoring at 17.1 points per game followed by Tyler Renner at 16.7 and Andrew Weaver at 10.4…Renner paces the squad in rebounding with 7.8 boards per outing followed by Shane Humphrey with 6.2…Carver is averaging a team-high 3.0 assists per contest…Carver needs just seven more points to reach 1000 for his Malone career…Humphrey is 16 boards shy of 500 career rebounds.
Women’s Basketball Tops Berea (KY) 83-78
In its only contest of the week, the Malone College women’s basketball team recorded an 83-78 home win over Berea (KY) College on Saturday afternoon after withstanding a late Mountaineers’ rally. The Pioneers led 75-65 with over three minutes remaining before a 13-3 Berea run knotted the contest at 78-78 with 24 ticks left on the clock. Berea, which ran a full-court press for the majority of the game, scored the final four points of its game-tying run after forcing a pair of turnovers on consecutive Malone inbounds attempts. However, with the game deadlocked at 78, the Pioneers finally broke free from the Mountaineers’ relentless pressure defense and took an 81-78 lead when junior forward Tara Miller (Miami East H.S.) converted a three-point play after being fouled on a made lay-up and then sinking the ensuing free throw. Berea quickly sprinted down the floor and launched its 38th three-point attempt of the game. The shot was off the mark, though, and freshman guard Allyson Wilson (Firestone H.S.) cemented the 83-78 win after snagging the rebound and then hitting two free throws with just three seconds remaining.
The Mountaineers, who entered the contest averaging over 90 points per outing, trailed by as many as 18 points in the first half after hitting just 11 of 40 (27.5%) shot attempts, including only three of 20 (15.0%) three-pointers. Berea fared much better in the second half, connecting on 20 of 40 attempts from the field, but it was not enough to overcome a 40-28 halftime deficit. Malone committed 27 turnovers against the incessant Mountaineer press but the hosts held a dominating 53-34 edge in total rebounds and made over 46% (30-64) of their shots from the field. The victory improves the Pioneers’ overall record to 2-8 on the season (0-0 AMC N) while Berea falls to 8-4 (0-0 KIAC).
Wilson led Malone with a career-high 17 points to go with seven rebounds and three assists. Junior forward Nicole Feher (Lutheran West H.S.) posted 14 points and seven rebounds, senior guard Kellyn Murphy (St. Vincent-St. Mary H.S.) notched 13 points and ten boards while junior guard Katie Murphy (St. Vincent-St Mary H.S.) contributed ten points, ten rebounds, and five steals.
This week, Malone (2-8, 0-0 AMC North) will compete in just one contest, a 1:00 p.m. home match-up with Cedarville University (5-4, 0-0 AMC South) on Saturday afternoon.
This week’s opponent: Cedarville- The Yellow Jackets hold a 20-12 advantage in the all-time series between the two schools and defeated Malone by a final score of 84-56 (at Cedarville) earlier this season. Cedarville has won each of the last twelve contests with the Pioneers.
Pioneer Notes: Kellyn Murphy leads the team in scoring at 14.4 points per game followed by Tara Miller at 9.8 and Nicole Feher at 6.6…Feher and Miller are each averaging a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game followed closely by Murphy at 6.2…Murphy also paces the squad in assists with 1.9 per outing.
Indoor Track & Field Teams Compete At Kent State Meet To Open Season; Numerous School Records And National Qualifying Times Posted
The Malone College men's and women's indoor track & field teams, led by head coach Charlie Grimes, wasted no time in getting off to a superb start on the season at the Kent State University Golden Flash Gala last Friday and Saturday. Pioneer athletes recorded three new school records and no fewer than eight NAIA national-qualifying marks were posted.
For the men's team, Ryan Kienzle (Sr., GlenOak H.S.), continued his stellar running after a runner-up individual finish at the recent NAIA Cross Country National Championships by smashing the Malone indoor record in the 5000 meters in a winning time of 14:20.99. Brady West (Sr., West Muskingum H.S.) finished sixth in the heptathlon with a new Malone indoor record of 4749 points and Nik Schweikert (Jr., Beavercreek H.S.) placed eighth in the 5000 meters in a time of 15:07.84. Each of the three athletes' performances were NAIA automatic qualifying marks.
For the women's squad, Becky Rospotynski (So., Copley H.S.) placed second in the pole vault with a new Malone school record and NAIA automatic qualifying mark of 11' 11.75". Laura McElrath (Sr., Tallmadge H.S.) also posted an NAIA national-qualifying mark in the pentathlon with a third-place finish at 3107 points.
Sarah Hines (So., Northmor H.S.) tallied an NAIA provisional qualifying mark in the 5000 meters in a time of 18:31.87 while Megan Patton (Jr., Perry H.S.) also qualified provisionally with a 14th-place finish in the 60-meter hurdles in 9.45 seconds.
In addition, the women's 4x400 relay team of Kim Winton (Jr., Medina H.S.), Laura Scott (Fr., West Branch H.S.), Amanda Theis (Fr., Seneca East H.S.) and Vallie Scott (Jr., West Branch H.S.) notched an NAIA provisional time of 4:05.40 (ninth place).
The Malone men's and women's teams will be idle until the Doug Raymond Invitational, hosted by Kent State University, on January 12th.
