Lions Fall At St. John Fisher In Wire-To-Wire Game

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – A strong second half for the Penn State Behrend men's basketball team was not enough, falling 58-56 at St. John Fisher on the first day of the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Tournament Sunday evening.

Score: St. John Fisher 58, Penn State Behrend 56
Records: St. John Fisher (3-5), Penn State Behrend (5-5)

Key Moments:

* The Cardinals jumped out to a seven-point advantage (14-7) with 11:19 on the scoreboard in the first half
* Behrend cut its deficit to one (16-15) with back-to-back baskets by Tommy DiRienzo (Pittsburgh, PA/Bethel Park) and Nate Edwards (Girard, PA/Girard)
* St. John Fisher took its biggest lead of the first frame of nine (30-21) with three minutes left on a layup by Connor Williams
* Sam Petrarca (Peters Township, PA/Peters Township) led all players with 11 first half points on 3-for-4 shooting from the field and free throw line to go along with six rebounds
* The Cardinals took their biggest lead of the contest (36-25) thanks to an Eric Kegler layup four minutes into the second half
* The Lions would go on a 10-2 run in the next four minutes
* A pair of three-pointers by James Wesling (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) and Michael Sopko (New Castle, PA/Neshannock) dwindled St. John Fisher's advantage to only three points (38-35) and forced a timeout
* Max Schneider ended Behrend's 12-2 run with a basket from beyond the arc for the Cardinals
* St. John Fisher grabbed a seven-point lead, but DiRienzo once again cut the lead with a three-pointer with 6:34 on the clock
* Petrarca knotted the score at 53 apiece and forced a Cardinals' timeout with two minutes remaining in regulation
* Out of the timeout, Cole Thompson converted a three-point play to once again give St. John Fisher the lead
* A potential game-winning three-pointer by DiRienzo in the final seconds was blocked by a Cardinals' defender to secure their third win of the season
* Petrarca recorded his first career double-double, finishing with a career-high 13 points and 14 rebounds
* DiRienzo tallied 12 points and seven rebounds, while Mason Blankenberg (Ontario, NY/Wayne) chipped in 10 points
* For the Cardinals, Williams delivered 13 points and 10 rebounds with Schneider registering 10 points and five rebounds

Up Next:

* Behrend concludes the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Tournament tomorrow with a matchup against Canton. Tip-off is slated for 1 p.m.