EMU used key scoring by E. J. Arrington and Mike Cullen in the second half to keep VWC off balance, as the Royals posted a 73-69 Old Dominion Athletic Conference upset victory.
Virginia Wesleyan, which shot only 36 percent from the field in a loss to No. 4 Randolph-Macon College on Saturday, saw things ice up again, as the Marlins hit only 33 percent against the Royals. That figure included an uncharacteristic 14 percent from three-point range, as the Marlins hit on only 4-of-28 attempts.
Eastern Mennonite (5-18, 3-13) took a 36-31 lead at halftime and led by as many as 11 points in the second half, before VWC (16-7, 9-7) rallied to take the lead. The Marlins outscored the Royals 16-3 to take a 53-51 lead with 8:14 remaining to be played.
Kendal Swartentruber emerged with a key three-point play to return the lead to EMU however, and the Royals never trailed again. Virginia Wesleyan played within three points of the lead twice in the final two minutes and had the opportunities to tie the game, but could not get shots to drop.
First-year Marlin Brandon Adair led all scoring with 21 points, hitting 7-of-11 shots from the field. Senior David Doino and junior Peter Warren scored 13 points each.
Arrington led scoring for EMU with 17 points. Jason Sager added 12 points, Swartzentruber finished with 11, and Mike Culen added 10.