The Brewers improved to 6-4 in the league (13-7 overall), while the Dutchmen are now 7-4 in the league (10-11 overall).
William Kieffer (Chappaqua, NY/Horace Greeley) added 10 points and eight rebounds off the Vassar bench. Union was led by senior captain Joe Mackey (Flushing, NY/Archbishop Molloy), who tallied a game best 19 points, while junior center Kyle Grimm (Sherrill, NY/Vernon Verona-Sherrill) had 12 points for the hosts. Vassar had a 44-26 advantage on the boards and forced 16 Union turnovers. The Dutchmen shot 42%, including 50% in the second half.
Vassar had a 26-25 lead at halftime, and went on a 20-9 run in the first 8:39 of the second half for a 45-33 lead as Avitabile had eight points during that run. Union got as close as three with 1:05 left on a Grimm layup, but Brazell made two free throws with 17 seconds left after a Union three point miss attempt, Vassar rebound and Dutchman foul. Avitabile made two more free throws for a seven point lead with four seconds left before Union’s Joey Lokitis (Norton, MA/Phillips Academy) hit a three at the buzzer to provide the final.
The Dutchmen host Rensselaer Saturday at 4 p.m. while Vassar travels to Skidmore for a 4 p.m. contest Saturday.
Vassar vs Union 2/9/07 6:00 PM at Viniar Athletic Center, Schenectady, NY At Viniar Athletic Center, Schenectady, NY VASSAR 58, UNION 54 VASSAR (13-7,6-4 Liberty) Tyson Brazell 8-15 2-2 18; Lawrence Avitabile 4-11 5-5 13; William Kieffer 5-6 0-2 10; Brian Butterworth 2-12 0-0 6; Jon Swartz 1-2 0-0 3; Lenny Holt 1-4 1-2 3; Daniel Forcella 1-3 0-0 3; Evan Hannay 0-2 1-2 1; Kyle Magnus 0-2 1-2 1; Matt Nunn 0-3 0-0 0; Joe Ward 0-2 0-0 0; Tom Driscoll 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-62 10-15 58. UNION (10-11,7-4 Lib.) Joe Mackey 6-10 3-3 19; Kyle Grimm 5-11 1-2 12; Drew Desmarais 1-3 4-4 6; Nick DiMaggio 2-5 0-0 5; Nick Ciresi 2-4 0-0 5; Joey Lokitis 1-2 0-0 3; Brendan Rose 1-1 0-0 2; Sean Clancy 1-2 0-0 2; Jim Clifford 0-0 0-0 0; Chris Bourke 0-1 0-0 0; Steve Madej 0-6 0-0 0. Totals 19-45 8-9 54. Vassar........................ 26 32 - 58 Union......................... 25 29 - 54 3-point goals-Vassar 4-19 (Brian Butterworth 2-8; Jon Swartz 1-2; Daniel Forcella 1-3; Matt Nunn 0-1; Joe Ward 0-1; Tyson Brazell 0-4), Union 8-18 (Joe Mackey 4-6; Joey Lokitis 1-2; Nick DiMaggio 1-1; Nick Ciresi 1-3; Kyle Grimm 1-2; Steve Madej 0-3; Sean Clancy 0-1). Fouled out--Vassar-None, Union-None. Rebounds-Vassar 44 (Lawrence Avitabile 10), Union 26 (Drew Desmarais 7). Assists-Vassar 8 (Matt Nunn 2; Lenny Holt 2; Daniel Forcella 2), Union 12 (Drew Desmarais 5). Total fouls-Vassar 14, Union 15. A-241