SCHENECTADY, NY -- Senior guard Neal Wesson (Portsmouth, RI/Portsmouth) led five Red Hawks in double figures, scoring a game high 17 points along with eight assists to lead visiting Rensselaer to a 74-68 key Liberty League triumph at Union's Viniar Athletic Center Saturday. The Red Hawks are now 6-5 in the league (13-9 overall) while the Dutchmen are 7-5 and in fourth (10-12 overall).
Senior forward Clay Hadley (LaGrange, IL/Lyons Township) scored 16 points with six rebounds, and sophomore forward Graham Gordon (Mt. Vernon, NY/Iona Prep) added 13 points with seven boards. Junior forward Sam Simmons (Newburgh, NY/Newburgh Free Academy) led all players with eight rebounds and joined senior forward Michael Visker (Essex, VT/Essex Junction) with 10 points each.
Senior captain
Joe Mackey (Flushing, NY/Archbishop Molloy) and junior center
Kyle Grimm (Sherrill, NY/Vernon Verona-Sherrill) led the Dutchmen with 16 points each, and sophomore forward
Drew Desmarais (St. James, NY/Smithtown) scored 13 points for the Dutchmen. Union was outrebounded 35-27, and shot 43% in the game, including 30% in the second half, while the Red Hawks erased a 37-33 halftime deficit by shooting 58% in the second half (46% for the game).
With the game tied at 41-41 with 17:03 left in the second half, the Red Hawks went on a 7-0 run in the next 4:27 for a 48-41 lead. The guests led by seven again at 62-55 with 7;15 left, but the Dutchmen chipped away and trailed by just two at 70-78 with 2:21 remaining in the second half when Grimm hit two free throws. Gordon made the first of two free throws with 2:09 left for a 71-68 RPI lead. A missed jumper by a Red Hawk with 47 seconds left was rebounded by Desmarais, but the Dutchmen missed a three pointer with 37 seconds left to attempt the tie.
Union had one more shot when freshman Joey Lokitis (Norton, MA/Phillips Academy) pulled down a rebound of a missed free throw with 27 seconds left, but Hadley stole the ball in front of the Union bench with 18 seconds remaining, and the Red Hawks made three free throws in the final seconds to seal the victory. Union hosts St. Lawrence Friday (8 p.m.) while Rensselaer hosts Vassar Tuesday at 8 p.m.
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