Guilford started quickly taking an early 12-4 lead only to see the lead vanish midway through the first half as Clay Michael (Inwood, WV/Musselman) helped Bridgewater take a 21-18 advantage thanks to a 15-6 run. The rest of the half saw four ties and two lead changes as the Eagles held a 33-32 halftime lead.
Bridgewater scored the first seven points of the second half to open a 40-32 lead. Quakers' rookie Ben Strong (Chapel Hill, NC/Chapel Hill) sparked a 12-4 Quakers run that tied the score at 44-44. A Ricky Easterling (Baltimore, MD/Dundalk) free throw gave Bridgewater its final lead before Edmond exploded for five points in the next 34 seconds to give Guilford the lead for good. The Eagles closed to within one point three times, but never regained the lead down the stretch.
Bridgewater's Michael shared game-high scoring honors with 19 points and added five boards, plus three steals. Easterling, the ODAC's leading scorer, finished with 17 points, three below his season average. Senior Ashby Tarkington (Chester, VA/Thomas Dale) added 14 points thanks to eight-for-eight free-throw shooting.
Guilford's bench outscored its Bridgewater counterparts, 43-8. Strong finished with 13 points, four rebounds and two blocks for the Quakers. Freshman Kerry Atkinson (Raleigh, NC/Wakefield) added 10 points and junior Genaro Lawhorn (Greensboro, NC/Oak Ridge Military Academy) tallied nine points and a team-high five rebounds. Snipes did not score in 18 minutes in his first game after his nationally acclaimed game-winner on Monday.
The Quakers return to home action Sunday (2/6) versus ODAC-rival Eastern Mennonite at 2:00 p.m. Guilford beat the Royals earlier this year in overtime, 113-107, in Harrisonburg, VA. The Eagles have a 2:00 p.m. league contest at Emory & Henry Sunday (2/6).
Bridgewater vs Guilford 02/05/05 2:00 p.m. at Greensboro, NC - Ragan-Brown Field House At Greensboro, NC - Ragan-Brown Field House GUILFORD 72, BRIDGEWATER 67 BRIDGEWATER (15-6, 10-4 ODAC) MICHAEL, Clay 5-12 9-12 19; EASTERLING, Ricky 7-16 3-5 17; TARKINGTON, Ashby 2-5 8-8 14; CUNNINGHAM, Dan 4-5 1-1 9; FITZGERALD, Matt 2-2 0-0 4; DURRETTE, C.W. 0-2 2-2 2; BUTLER, Zach 1-3 0-0 2; STROTMAN, Jay 0-1 0-0 0; STEWART, Nick 0-1 0-0 0; MAUPIN, Josh 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 21-50 23-28 67. GUILFORD (12-9, 7-7 ODAC) EDMOND, Ray 4-7 9-11 19; STRONG, Ben 5-7 3-4 13; ATKINSON, Kerry 4-11 2-3 10; LAWHORN, Genaro 4-8 1-2 9; KIMBROUGH, Caleb 1-3 6-8 8; SHARPE, Andy 1-2 2-2 4; BURGE, Thomas 2-5 0-0 4; MILLER, Truitt 1-2 1-2 3; TAYLOR, Jamel 1-1 0-2 2; GRAY, Ashford 0-2 0-0 0; BELKOSKI, Eric 0-4 0-2 0; SNIPES, Jordan 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 23-54 24-36 72. Bridgewater................... 33 34 - 67 Guilford...................... 32 40 - 72 3-point goals-Bridgewater 2-11 (TARKINGTON, Ashby 2-3; EASTERLING, Ricky 0-5; MAUPIN, Josh 0-2; MICHAEL, Clay 0-1), Guilford 2-17 (EDMOND, Ray 2-5; ATKINSON, Kerry 0-5; KIMBROUGH, Caleb 0-1; BURGE, Thomas 0-1; MILLER, Truitt 0-1; GRAY, Ashford 0-2; SNIPES, Jordan 0-2). Fouled out--Bridgewater-None, Guilford-None. Rebounds-Bridgewater 32 (MICHAEL, Clay 5; DURRETTE, C.W. 5; BUTLER, Zach 5), Guilford 36 (LAWHORN, Genaro 5; EDMOND, Ray 5). Assists-Bridgewater 9 (EASTERLING, Ricky 4), Guilford 12 (ATKINSON, Kerry 2; BURGE, Thomas 2). Total fouls-Bridgewater 20, Guilford 22. A-587 Old Dominion Athletic Conference game. Ray Edmond ties a career-high with 19 points. Guilford salvages a split with Bridgewater in the season series.