Presque Isle, ME - Vermont State University Lyndon led well into the second half of Sunday's North Atlantic Conference men's basketball game.  However the Hornets came up just short of handing the host Owls their first home defeat, falling 89-80.  UMPI improved to 13-3 on the season and 6-1 in conference play.  Meanwhile the Hornets fell to 4-13 on the season and 1-5 in the NAC.

After UMPI jumped out to a 10-3 advantage, Lyndon responded with a 17-2 run capped by a Gregory Gonyea Jr. (Dolgeville, NY) steal and layup to give the Hornets a 20-12 lead just over eight minutes into the contest.  Lyndon would hold the lead for the remainder of the half, nd Victor Kukta Reyes' (Fitchburg, MA) driving layup with six seconds to go in th half sent the Hornets into intermission ahead 45-39.

Tyler Bergmans (Ferrisburgh, VT) scored the first basket of the second half to put Lyndon back up by eight, but UMPI responded wiht a 9-0 run capped by Saquan Carswell's layup off of a turnover, giving the Owls their first lead since the opening minutes.  The game remained close over the next several minutes, with the lead changing hands several times.

With the game tied at 63-63 at the 10:00 mark, Akhe McMichael converted a pair of free throws that started a quick six-point Owl run.  Lyndon remained on the Owl heals, and a Bergmans layup brought Lyndon within two at 73-71 with 5:54 to go.  The Owls would respond with the next seven points, however, and were able to keep the Hornets at bay the rest of the way.

McMichael led UMPI with 21 points and added seven rebounds.  Carswell posted a double double with 19 points and 13 boards.  Dwaine Williams and Gilbert Jean Mendez also reached double figures with 16 and 12 points respectively.

Gonyea led all scorers with 30 points and topped the Hornets with six rebounds.  Bergmans finished with 21 points.

The Hornets return home on Friday to host the State University of New York at Cobleskill in a NAC West Division matchup.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30 pm.