EMU (6-5, 2-3 ODAC) led by as many as 14 in regulation and led 61-51 with 7:57 remaining, but LC (1-12, 1-5 ODAC) closed the game on a 14-4 run. The Royals led by six with 3:31 remaining but committed six of their 21 turnovers in the remaining stretch to let the Hornets back in it.
In the second overtime session, with the score tied at 81-81. Sophomore Korey Whiting (Stafford, Va.) found senior E.J. Arrington under the basket for a lay-up and a two-point EMU lead. Sophomore Brad Parkes (Winchester, Va.) followed with a steal and converted both free throw opportunities for a four-point margin.
LC sophomore Kwame Safo (Vienna, Va.) hit a lay-up to cut it to two, but EMU senior Dustin Galyon (Sterling, Kan.) hit 1-of-2 free throws on three consecutive opportunities to stretch the lead to five. Senior guard Matt Sweeney (Hollywood, Md.) hit a three-point field goal with three seconds left for the Hornets and junior JoMorrae Gordon (Oakdale, Calif.) missed two free throws with 0.6 seconds remaining, but a full-court heave off the rebound did not come close as the Royals won 88-86.
Junior Jason Sager (Edingburg, Va.) led all players with 28 points and added nine rebounds and four assists. Arrington scored 16 and pulled six boards while junior center Jason Lentz (Diana, W.Va.) added 14 and five. Parkes added 11 points for the Royals. EMU shot 51.7% from the floor, but went just 23-for-45 from the free throw line (51.1%).
Sweeney led the Hornets with 25 points, two assists, and three steals. Safo scored 15 points while senior Patrick Prior (Cheshire, Conn.) had a double-double with 14 points and 10 boards. Senior Andy Albright (Hudson, Ohio) contributed 14 points, five boards, and four assists. The Hornets shot 54.7% from the floor and also struggled from the charity stripe, going 10-for-23 (43.5%).
EMU returns to action on Monday with a road contest at 7 p.m. at Hampden-Sydney College.
Newspaper Box Score Lynchburg vs Eastern Mennonite 01/07/06 7:00pm at Harrisonburg, Va. At Harrisonburg, Va. EASTERN MENNONITE 88, LYNCHBURG 86 LYNCHBURG (1-12, 1-5 ODAC) SWEENEY, Matthew 9-14 4-7 25; SAFO, Kwame 6-11 3-4 15; ALBRIGHT, Andy 5-11 2-2 14; PRIOR, Patrick 7-14 0-4 14; VASILIOU, Peter 3-5 0-0 6; FAIRCHILD, Reed 2-3 1-2 5; GOINGS, Ramon 2-4 0-0 4; SHEAFFER, David 1-2 0-4 3; NORRIS, Drew 0-0 0-0 0; EARLY, Jason 0-0 0-0 0; FANCOURT, Evan 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 35-64 10-23 86. EASTERN MENNONITE (6-5, 2-3 ODAC) SAGER, Jason 7-16 12-19 28; ARRINGTON, E.J. 6-7 3-7 16; LENTZ, Jason 6-7 2-4 14; PARKES, Brad 4-8 3-4 11; WHITING, Korey 4-10 0-3 8; PARRISH, LeRoger 2-3 0-0 5; LYONS, Jered 1-3 0-0 3; GALYON, Dustin 0-2 3-6 3; BAILEY, Corey 0-1 0-0 0; GORDON, JoMorrae 0-1 0-2 0; BROWN, Dalany 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 30-58 23-45 88. Lynchburg..................... 28 37 10 11 - 86 Eastern Mennonite............. 42 23 10 13 - 88 3-point goals-Lynchburg 6-15 (SWEENEY, Matthew 3-6; ALBRIGHT, Andy 2-6; SHEAFFER, David 1-2; GOINGS, Ramon 0-1), Eastern Mennonite 5-14 (SAGER, Jason 2-6; LYONS, Jered 1-2; PARRISH, LeRoger 1-1; ARRINGTON, E.J. 1-1; WHITING, Korey 0-3; PARKES, Brad 0-1). Fouled out--Lynchburg-VASILIOU, Peter; FAIRCHILD, Reed; ALBRIGHT, Andy; SHEAFFER, David, Eastern Mennonite-None. Rebounds-Lynchburg 37 (PRIOR, Patrick 10), Eastern Mennonite 37 (SAGER, Jason 9). Assists-Lynchburg 16 (ALBRIGHT, Andy 4), Eastern Mennonite 18 (WHITING, Korey 4; SAGER, Jason 4). Total fouls-Lynchburg 35, Eastern Mennonite 24. A-450