Fitchburg State led, 34-28, at the break as they drilled 8 three pointers in the half. The Falcons shot 41.9% from the field but 57.1% from beyond the arc. The visitors led by as many as 9 in the first frame before the Lancers were able to cut the deficit to 6 at the break. Worcester State was paced by freshman Tyler Hopkins (Oxford, MA) who shot a perfect 3 of 3 from the field including 2 treys for 8 first half points. Junior Winfred Rembert (New Haven, CT) added 6 points. Captain Dan Coen (Auburn, MA) led the Falcons with 9 points with all three coming on long range field goals. Freshman Andrew Vayo (Waterville, ME) chipped in with 6 points.
The second half saw the Lancers catch the Falcons midway through the half as Hopkins rattled off 6 quick points and Worcester State took the lead on a Tyson Drayton (Roxbury, MA) lay-up at the 13:29 mark. Worcester State led by a point at, 64-63, before Skiffington nailed his second of three straight bombs to give Fitchburg State the lead for good with 2:14 remaining.
Worcester State got 18 points each from Hopkins and Drayton. Sophomore Will Spont (Bellingham, MA) figured with 10 points and 7 rebounds. Fitchburg State was led by Skiffington with 17 points followed by Coen with 16 and Vayo who added 12 points.
Worcester State will return to action on Thursday when they travel to Eastern Connecticut. Fitchburg State will host the Vikings of Salem state on Saturday.
Fitchburg State vs Worcester State College 1/31/06 8:00 pm at Worcester, MA At Worcester, MA FITCHBURG STATE 69, WORCESTER STATE COLLEGE 66 FITCHBURG STATE (8-11, 3-4) Brian Skiffington 5-8 3-4 17; Dan Koen 5-12 2-6 16; Andrew Vayo 5-10 2-6 12; Jeff Kozik 3-5 0-1 8; Mike Woods 2-3 0-0 6; Albert Ortiz 2-7 0-0 4; Matt Collins 1-5 0-0 3; Peter Uzoma 1-6 1-2 3; Nick Smith 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 24-60 8-19 69. WORCESTER STATE COLLEGE (9-9, 4-3) Tyler Hopkins 6-8 3-3 18; Tyson Drayton 7-15 4-4 18; Will Spont 4-9 2-4 10; Winfred Rembert 4-8 0-1 8; Ryan Hopkins 2-8 2-2 6; Mark Retallic 3-6 0-0 6; Bobby Wilson 0-0 0-0 0; Ralph Frazier 0-3 0-0 0; Chris Frulla 0-1 0-0 0; Randy Gratton 0-1 0-1 0. Totals 26-59 11-15 66. Fitchburg State............... 34 35 - 69 Worcester State College....... 28 38 - 66 3-point goals-Fitchburg State 13-28 (Dan Koen 4-9; Brian Skiffington 4-7; Jeff Kozik 2-3; Mike Woods 2-2; Matt Collins 1-5; Nick Smith 0-1; Albert Ortiz 0-1), Worcester State College 3-16 (Tyler Hopkins 3-5; Tyson Drayton 0-3; Ryan Hopkins 0-6; Ralph Frazier 0-1; Chris Frulla 0-1). Fouled out--Fitchburg State-Albert Ortiz; Brian Skiffington, Worcester State College-Mark Retallic. Rebounds-Fitchburg State 37 (Peter Uzoma 9), Worcester State College 38 (Winfred Rembert 9). Assists-Fitchburg State 16 (Jeff Kozik 4), Worcester State College 9 (Ryan Hopkins 2; Tyson Drayton 2; Randy Gratton 2). Total fouls-Fitchburg State 20, Worcester State College 24. A-200