The Spartans knew the contest would be tough. The Soaring Eagles played Widener close in last Sunday’s tournament consolation round and then hung tough with a talented Rochester squad on Wednesday. York trailed 9-3 as the Spartans looked to shake off the effects of a four hour bus trip. The Soaring Eagles led by as many as eight at 15-7 but York put together a 13-4 run that gave the Spartans a 20-19 lead. A Micah Owens free throw tied the game at 20 but the Spartans scored five of the last seven points of the half to take a 25-22 lead to the intermission. The Spartans are now 5-0 when taking a lead to the half.
York built the lead to 12 on a Chad McGowan jumper with 9:24 remaining in the game. The Soaring Eagles scored 13 of the next 17 points to cut the Spartan lead to 49-46 with 5:31 remaining in regulation. A trey by Brandon Bushey pushed the York lead back to six but Elmira got a free throw from Albert Davis and a Charles Henry three to cut the Spartan lead to a deuce at 52-50. The Spartans got their last field goal on a Paddy Lee jumper that gave the Spartans a 54-50 lead with 2:09 left. York then went 8-for-10 from the charity stripe over the last 1:15 to secure the victory.
The Spartans were led by Bushey as the junior recorded a game-high 19 points while he also had three rebounds and two assists. Sophomore point guard Brad Zerfing chipped in with 14 points, three assists, and three steals. Bushey and Zerfing combined to go 10-for-10 from the charity stripe including making all six of their combined attempts inside the last minute of the game. Junior Brian Singer added eight points and eight rebounds in an efficient 19 minutes of action. Lee contributed seven points and six rebounds to the Spartan attack.
Elmira received 18 points from Davis as the Soaring Eagle captain had 18 points and nine rebounds. Henry was the other Soaring Eagle in double figures with 17 points. Andy Frica pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds in addition to scoring eight points for Elmira.
The Spartans finished the game shooting 41.3% from the floor and just 30% from beyond the arc. Elmira outrebounded the Spartans 42-36, the first time the Spartans have not held the advantage on the boards at the end of a game. Elmira had a whopping 20 offensive rebounds and that allowed them to attempt 15 more shots than the Spartans from the field for the contest.
The win was the 349th in the illustrious career of Spartan head coach Jeff Gamber.
York returns to action on Wednesday evening when they host Thiel College in a non-conference contest. Tip time is set for 7:30 pm.