BOX SCORE
LA GRANDE, Ore. – Behind a game-high 22 points by junior
Erik Cronrath (Battle Ground, Wash.) on 8-for-10 shooting from the field, Corban's men's basketball team nearly pulled off an upset against the NAIA's No. 14-ranked Eastern Oregon before falling 88-83 Friday on Think Pink Night inside Quinn Coliseum.
The visiting Warriors held an 11-point lead (17-6) almost seven minutes into the game, settled for a three-point halftime lead (47-44), and were up by as much as seven points (60-53) near the midway point of the second half before succumbing to a game-ending 35-23 rally by the nationally-ranked Mountaineers en route to picking up the win.
Along with Cronrath, fellow junior
Jake Mauermann (Clackamas, Ore.) registered his second 20-point effort of the season hitting the mark exactly thanks to a 5-for-10 shooting performance from beyond the three-point line. Two other Warriors – freshman
Jordan Carter (Salem, Ore.) and sophomore
Jacob Kopra (Gresham, Ore.) – also scored in double figures with 13 and 12 points respectively, while Carter pulled down a game-high tying 10 rebounds for his second straight double-double to go along with a team-high four assists by senior
Ian Logan (Aloha, Ore.).
Corban came out of the gates hitting on all cylinders, as the visiting Warriors quickly built an 11-point lead (17-6) following an old-fashion three-point play by Cronrath at the 13:46 mark. The lead would continue to stay with the visiting team until the 4:07 mark when Eastern Oregon's Traveres Peterson hit a jumper that gave the host Mountaineers a slim one-point lead (39-38). The two teams would trade the lead over the next three minutes until Corban secured a one-point advantage (45-44) after a Kopra free throw with just over a minute remaining. The visiting Warriors would settle for a three-point halftime lead (47-44) after two more Kopra free throws capped the scoring over the opening twenty minutes.
The second half would begin with Corban increasing its lead to seven points (60-53) after a Carter free throw with 13:56 on the clock. Over the next nine minutes, Eastern Oregon would use a 22-15 run en route to tying the score at 75-75 after a Kyllian Wood jumper at the 6:57 mark. The host Mountaineers would grab the lead one minute later (79-76) after a Jamar Johnson three-pointer before Corban pulled within a single point (82-81) following a pair of free throws by junior
Jonathan Ramirez (New Britain, Conn.) with 3:49 left. Unfortunately, the visiting Warriors could not get any closer as Eastern Oregon closed out the game on a 6-2 run that resulted in the five-point win (88-83).
Eastern Oregon was led offensively by Thomas McCarthy's 15-point effort off the bench, while three other Mountaineers – J.C. Cook, Anthony Brown, and Peterson – all scored 13 points each. Rebounding-wise, Brown pulled down a game-high tying 10 rebounds to go along with a game-high six assists by Cody Thurmond.
As a team, Corban shot a combined 26-for-61 (42.6%) from the field to go along with an 8-for-28 (28.6%) showing from beyond the three-point line and a 23-for-33 (69.7%) performance from the free throw line. On the other hand, Eastern Oregon was a combined 30-for-68 (44.1%) from the field, 12-for-32 (37.5%) from long distance, and 16-for-27 (59.3%) at the charity stripe.
With tonight's result, Corban falls to 15-13 overall and 5-11 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, Eastern Oregon improves to 20-5 overall and 11-4 in league games. The Warriors will return to the hardwood tomorrow night – Saturday, February 12th – in their final road game of the season against the Coyotes of The College of Idaho beginning at 7:30 p.m. (MST) in Caldwell, Idaho.
