Jackets Blast Kalamazoo, 91-69, to Open 2011-2012 Campaign

KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Defiance College outscored the Hornets of Kalamazoo by a 49-32 margin in the second half and cruised to a season-opening, 91-69, victory on the road to open the 2011-2012 season on Tuesday evening.

Logan Wolfrum netted the first five points of the season for the Yellow Jackets and eventually scored 11 of DC's first 17 to push the squad to a 17-14 lead midway through the opening half. Wolfrum went on to pour in 16 points in the opening 20 minutes, as Defiance carried a slim, 42-37, advantage into the half.

The Jackets showcased an improved defense in the second stanza, by holding Kalamazoo to 30.4-percent shooting from the floor and forcing 12 Hornet turnovers. DC's high-powered offensive attack took care of the rest, by dumping 49 points on 17-of-28 shooting in the half to take control.

Defiance pushed the spread into double figures to stay with a 9-0 spurt that opened up a 64-49 gap with 11:04 remaining in the contest. The then swelled to 23 on a triple from Wolfrum for a commanding, 82-59, cushion with just over five minutes left on the clock and went as high as 24 points, before settling on the 22-point margin of victory.

Mason Roth and Ryan Hicks combined for 18 points to fuel the second-half charge, but the headliner was Wolfrum, who ended the night with 23 points, six rebounds, three steals and one block in his 28 minutes of work.

Roth excelled at the point with 13 points, five assists and two thefts, while Hicks ended with 14 points and Kyle Tietje scored 12 to go with four boards. When the dust had settled, Defiance had seen 17 players touch the court with 13 denting the scoring column and 12 hauling in at least one rebound in the lopsided affair.

Defiance (1-0) will face the No. 9 Wooster Fighting Scots (0-0) on Friday at 8:00 pm in the first day of the NCAC/HCAC Classic hosted by Wooster. DC will then take on Ohio Wesleyan (0-1) in a 6:00 pm tip on Saturday.

Both games will be webcast live by the Yellow Jacket Sports Network and can be viewed for free at www.defianceathletics.com/video.