Lyndonville, VT - the Northern Vermont University-Lyndon men's basketball team needed a win over the University of Maine at Presque Isle on Saturday in order to control their own destiny in clinching a spot in the North Atlantic Conference Championship Tournament. For the second day in a row, the Hornets were victimized by a second half cold spell, allowing the visiting Owls to roll to a 103-81 victory. UMPI evened their overall record at 12-12 and finished 8-6 in NAC play. Lyndon fell to 6-18 on the season and 3-10 in the conference.
With the Hornets coming up short against UMPI, Lyndon needed Husson University to defeat Maine Maritime Academy in order to secure a spot in the post-season. Husson did just that, pulling out an 86-75 overtime win that sends the Hornets to the NAC Tournament.
The Hornets got off to a strong start in Saturday's game, starting with Gregory Gonyea Jr.'s (Dolgeville, NY) basket and free throw and a Calder Horowitz-McCadden (south Burlington, VT) layup. Lyndon eventually extended their lead to seven following a Peyton Olsen (Middleburgh, NY) basket and free throw at the 13:55 mark.
The Owls began to chip away, however. A Griffin Guerrette three-pointer gave the Owls their first lead at 23-21, and a Guerrette steal and layup capped a 9-0 run that put UMPI in front by four. UMPI would grow their advantage to eight at 34-26 follwing another Guerrette jumper with 6:25 to go in the half.
Lyndon would climb back, and Olsen's three-pointer cut the Owl lead to 41-40 at the 2:37 mark. UMPI would close the half on a 9-4 run, however, and take a 50-44 lead into intermission.
Lyndon had a chance to draw closer as the second half got underway. The Hornets got four straight defensive stops to start the half, but unfortunately they were unable to convert any into points. Back to back Dany Harris layups then got UMPI on the board, while Lyndon continued to struggle at the offensive end. By the time Olsen found Gonyea for a layup almost five minutes into the half, the Owls had run off ten unanswered points to extend their lead to 60-44.
UMPI continued to take advantage of Lyndon's offensive struggles, extending their lead to 24 following an Akhe McMichael layup at the 12:49 mark which made the score 71-47.
The Hornets would begin to slowly chip away at the Owl lead, and when Isaiah Terrill (Barre, VT) scored off of an Owl turnover, then Olsen converted a pair of free throws, Lyndon was within 11 at 87-76 with 3:41 remaining. That would be as close as the Hornets would get, as UMPI used a quick 8-0 run to end any hopes of a comeback.
Guerrette finished with 26 points Gilbert Jean Mendez added 20 points, while McMichael and Harris chipped in with 17 and 16 points respectively.
Olsen led Lyndon with a game high 31 points and dished out seven assists. Gonyea added 20 points on 8/11 shooting. Horowitz-McCadden posted a 12-point, 10-rebound double double. Mondwell Bukle (Pyeongtaek, South Korea) scored 12 points and Jayden Macknail (Camillus, NY) pulled down 10 rebounds.
The Hornets will close out the regular season on Tuesday evening when they host Northern Vermont University-Johnson in a 7:30 pm Senior Night tip-off.
The NAC Championship Tournament will begin next Friday with East Division Quarterfinals hosted by the University of Maine at Farmington. Pairings and game times will be released by the conference office in the upcoming days.
