The win marks the first NCAA tournament victory in program-history for the Pioneers, and the first appearance in an NCAA tournament game for both squads.
Utica shot out to a 4-0 lead on a jumper by senior forward Ray Bryant (Utica, NY). The Pioneers trailed only once in the first half after Aaron Vogelzang (Jericho, VT) scored two of his 10 points to give the Fighting Scots a 5-4 lead just 2:46 into the game.
Utica led by as many as eight points in the first half, but the Scots would not back down cutting the lead to just one point on three occasions. The Pioneers went into the locker room at halftime with a 39-35 lead.
Gordon opened the second half with on a 11-2 run behind two 3-pointers by Michael Herr (Lampeter, PA) and a key three-point play by standout guard Jerry Logan (Marietta, GA). Senior captain Willie Lucas (Brooklyn, NY) answered right back for the Pioneers scoring eight points over a four-minute span to tie the game at 58-58.
The second half was highlighted by seven ties, with the Pioneers trailing by no more than five points the entire half.
Utica went 16:07 in the second half with out a lead, until Bryant, who was recently named to the Empire 8 All-Conference First Team, tied the game at 64-64 on a lay up with 1:44 remaining. After a Vogelzang turnover, Bryant hit one-of two free throws to put the Pioneers up 65-64. Peter Hassler (Westford, VT) went 1-of-2 from the charity stripe for the Scots to tie the game up again at 65-65 with 1:11 remaining. Utica answered right back on a Doug Herring (Newburgh, NY) jumper form the foul line extended to put the Pioneers up by two. After a missed jumper by Logan with just 00:28 left, senior captain Justin Cichon (New Hartford, NY), who scored just six points on the evening, knocked home four free-throws in the final eight seconds to seal the deal for Utica.
Bryant tallied a game-high 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, while Lucas finished with 14 points and seven boards. Herring finished with 13 points on 2-of-5 shooting from behind the arc.
The Scots had four players in double figures including Logan, who scored a team-high 17 points, and dished out seven assists. Jon Marstaller (Naples, ME), a Commonwealth Coast Conference First-Team selection, had a solid evening in the post tallying 12 points and five rebounds, while Herr finished with 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting from 3-point land.
The Pioneers will face either WPI or Bridgewater State at 7 p.m. Saturday night in the second-round at WPI. Gordon College closes out the 2005-2006 season with a 23-5 overall record, while Utica improves to 22-6.
Newspaper Box Score Utica vs Gordon 3/3/06 6:00pm at Worcester, MA At Worcester, MA UTICA 71, GORDON 66 UTICA (22-6) Ray Bryant 8-13 9-12 25; Willie Lucas 5-9 4-4 14; Doug Herring 5-8 1-2 13; Brian Collier 2-5 2-5 7; Justin Cichon 1-6 4-4 6; Kafele Fleming 1-1 2-2 4; Shawn Brown 1-1 0-0 2; Chris Bitetto 0-1 0-0 0; Dennis Munch 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-44 22-29 71. GORDON (23-5) Jerry Logan 5-10 6-10 17; Jon Marstaller 5-13 1-2 12; Michael Herr 4-9 0-0 11; Aaron Vogelzang 3-6 4-6 10; Justin Kaufman 2-8 3-4 9; Peter Hassler 1-1 1-2 3; M. Schnackenberg 1-1 0-0 2; Tim DeLuca 1-1 0-0 2; John Beebe 0-0 0-0 0; Mark Beebe 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 22-49 15-24 66. Utica......................... 39 32 - 71 Gordon........................ 35 31 - 66 3-point goals-Utica 3-9 (Doug Herring 2-5; Brian Collier 1-1; Justin Cichon 0-1; Willie Lucas 0-2), Gordon 7-17 (Michael Herr 3-6; Justin Kaufman 2-6; Jon Marstaller 1-2; Jerry Logan 1-3). Fouled out--Utica-None, Gordon-Aaron Vogelzang. Rebounds-Utica 37 (Ray Bryant 12), Gordon 20 (Jon Marstaller 5). Assists-Utica 9 (Doug Herring 2; Justin Cichon 2; Ray Bryant 2; Brian Collier 2), Gordon 14 (Justin Kaufman 4; Jerry Logan 4). Total fouls-Utica 20, Gordon 23. A-650