Second-Half Spurt Propels DC Men Past Lions

CINCINNATI – Defiance College scored 14-straight points during a 23-5 run to open the second half and secured a key road victory on Saturday at Mount St. Joseph. The Jackets connected on 16-of-21 shots in the final 20 minutes, en route to the 75-64 victory.

The 23-5 stretch was the second extended run of the afternoon for Defiance, as the Jackets used a 14-3 spurt midway through the first stanza to take control of the contest. The first rally was capped by Drew Frizell's second trey of the game and gave DC the 20-12 cushion.

The Jackets carried the lead into the break in the form of a 30-26 margin and broke the game open with 23 of the first 28 points to start the second half. The surge was capped by a 14-0 rally, with a Mason Roth three giving DC the largest lead of the night at 53-31.

Mt. St. Joseph (6-9, 2-6 HCAC) scored the next 11 points to claw back to within 11 points with 9:02 left in the game, but Frizell knocked down a long-ranged triple to end the run and give Defiance a 56-42 advantage.

Defiance would never let the lead shrink below eight points the rest of the way, cruising to the 75-64 victory to end a seven-game losing skid away from the Karl H. Weaner Community Center.

The Jackets sank 28-of-40 field goals on the day for a blistering 70.0-percent clip from the field and connected on 20-of-25 attempts from inside the arc, while hitting eight-of-15 shots from three-point territory to keep the pressure on the Lions.

Seven DC players scored at least seven points in the win, with Logan Wolfrum leading the pack with 17 points and eight assists and Frizell adding 12 on four-of-six shooting from deep. Travis Schomaeker continued his strong play off the bench, chipping in nine points to go with four helpers, while Ryan Hicks and Anthony Barnum each added eight points.

Defiance (6-9, 2-6 HCAC) has now won four of its last six outings and will look to stay on track when it hosts Earlham (0-15, 0-8 HCAC) on Wednesday at 7:30 pm. The game will not be carried by the Yellow Jacket Sports Network but can be followed via the live stats broadcast at www.DefianceAthletics.com/media/2011-12/LiveStats/MensBasketball/xlive.htm.