Juniata (4-7) finished with four players in double figures, led by Travis Boyd and Tommy McConnell, who each went for 21. Aaron Chamberlain added 16 while Nick Hager chipped in with 13.
Thiel (4-8) was paced by sophomore forward Percy Sweeting, who finished with 19 points on seven-of-eight shooting. Junior forward Damien Williams added 17 while freshman forward Joe Herrmann totaled 15 points and seven rebounds.
Hager dropped a pair of free throws with 2:15 to play in the opening period to put the Eagles up seven (40-33), but the Tomcats finished the half on an 8-2 run to pull to within one (42-41) going into the break. Junior guard C.J. Hunt had five of the Tomcat's final eight of the half, including a three with five seconds to go.
A Williams' three at the 11:14 mark gave Thiel its first lead of the half at 59-58, but Juniata would storm back by outscoring the Tomcats 10-0 over the next 2:24 to regain the lead at 68-59.
Freshman guard Ross Watson trimmed the Thiel deficit to one (88-87) with a three-pointer with 18 seconds to play, but the Eagles connected on three-of-four free throws down the stretch to seal the five-point win.
The Tomcats shot 50.0 percent (29-58) for the game, but connected on just 66.7 percent (20-30) of their free throw attempts. Juniata finished 37-of-43 (86.0%) from the line for the game and hit 46.8 percent (22-47) from the floor, including 15-of-16 in the first half.
Thiel returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 8 when they host SUNY-Fredonia. Tip off is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Newspaper Box Score Juniata College vs Thiel College (Pa.) 1-5-05 7:30 pm at Greenville, Pa., Rissell-Beeghly Gym At Greenville, Pa., Rissell-Beeghly Gym JUNIATA COLLEGE 91, THIEL COLLEGE (PA.) 87 JUNIATA COLLEGE (4-7) Travis Boyd 7-11 3-4 21; Tommy McConnell 6-9 6-8 21; Aaron Chamberlain 2-5 10-10 16; Nick Hager 5-13 2-2 13; Chris Jasiota 1-6 6-7 8; Neil Holloway 0-0 7-8 7; Brent Ferko 1-1 1-2 3; Kyle Opitz 0-1 2-2 2; Steve Holencik 0-0 0-0 0; Brian Cannon 0-1 0-0 0; Jeff Byer 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-47 37-43 91. THIEL COLLEGE (PA.) (4-8) Percy Sweeting 7-8 5-7 19; Damien Williams 7-14 1-1 17; Joe Herrmann 4-5 4-8 15; CJ Hunt 4-9 3-3 13; Daryl Moore 4-11 0-0 9; Ross Watson 1-3 3-4 6; Henry Passerrello 1-2 2-3 4; Stephen Laird 1-3 1-2 3; Max Slater 0-1 1-2 1; Gary Gates 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 29-58 20-30 87. Juniata College............... 42 49 - 91 Thiel College (Pa.)........... 41 46 - 87 3-point goals-Juniata College 10-22 (Travis Boyd 4-7; Tommy McConnell 3-5; Aaron Chamberlain 2-4; Nick Hager 1-5; Kyle Opitz 0-1), Thiel College (Pa.) 9-22 (Joe Herrmann 3-4; CJ Hunt 2-6; Damien Williams 2-5; Ross Watson 1-1; Daryl Moore 1-4; Stephen Laird 0-1; Percy Sweeting 0-1). Fouled out--Juniata College-Nick Hager; Chris Jasiota, Thiel College (Pa.)-Daryl Moore; Stephen Laird; Damien Williams. Rebounds-Juniata College 34 (Travis Boyd 12), Thiel College (Pa.) 27 (Joe Herrmann 7). Assists-Juniata College 12 (Brent Ferko 2; Nick Hager 2; Aaron Chamberlain 2), Thiel College (Pa.) 14 (Daryl Moore 5). Total fouls-Juniata College 25, Thiel College (Pa.) 34. A-240