GENEVA, N.Y. – The Union College men's basketball team had its three-game winning streak snapped by Liberty League frontrunner Hobart College by the score of 75-61 in both teams' regular-season finale on Saturday afternoon at Bristol Gym.
 
With the loss, Union (14-10, 9-9 Liberty League) finishes in a three-way tie for fourth place in the conference standings with Rochester Institute of Technology and Bard College. RIT earns the fourth spot via tiebreaker and Union finishes fifth, meaning the Garnet Chargers will head back to Rochester on Tuesday for the first round of the Liberty League Tournament.
 
Sophomore Christian Dufort and first-year Jack Plesser tied for the team lead with 15 points apiece for Union, with Dufort adding a game-high 12 rebounds for his fourth straight double-double. First-year Tanner Tedesco recorded a game-high eight assists for the visitors as well. Alex Moesch led five (20-5, 13-5 Liberty League) players in double figures with a game-high 17 points, followed by Carter Meshanic with 16 points and nine boards.
 
The Garnet Chargers used a 12-2 run to take an 18-11 lead at the midway point of the opening half, led by six points each from Dufort and Plesser. Union built up its largest lead of the afternoon at 24-14 after a driving layup by senior Luke McGarrity capped a personal 6-0 run with 6:39 left in the opening frame. However, Hobart came back with 10 straight points to tie the score at 24 with 4:05 remaining.
 
First-year Brendan Reid ended the run with a pair of free throws, and two Plesser buckets bumped the lead back to four with under two minutes remaining. A three from first-year Matthew Garside helped the visitors take a 33-29 lead into the locker rooms.
 
Union finished the opening half shooting 48.4 percent (15 of 31) from the field despite hitting on only one of eight long-range attempts. Hobart shot 32.1 percent (9 of 28) overall in the opening 20 minutes.
 
The second half was very closely contested, with the teams staying within one possession for the first 14-plus minutes. Included in that stretch was a frantic period in which the lead changed on six straight possessions, the last coming on a Dufort three that put Union back up 41-39. A Garside triple gave Union its last lead at 54-52 before a quick 8-1 run gave the Statesmen a 60-55 lead with 5:47 left.
 
The Hobart lead grew to seven at 64-57 with 2:31 on the clock, but Dufort answered immediately with a three to decrease the lead to four. A Hobart three and turnover on Union's subsequent possession, however, forced Union into fouling mode with under two minutes remaining and the visitors could get no closer. The Statesmen closed the game on an 11-1 run over the final 2:04 to pick up the victory.
 
Hobart shot 53.3 percent (16 of 30) from the field in the second stanza to finish the afternoon at 43.1 percent (25 of 58) from the floor, while Union hit 11-of-32 shots (34.4 percent) over the final 20 minutes to finish the game at 40.6 percent (26 of 64).
 
Check UnionAthletics.com early next week for a full postseason preview as the Garnet Chargers head to Rochester for the first round of the Liberty League Tournament.