WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Patriots pulled out a last second victory against Maryland Bible College, Saturday, December 7. The men won the nail-biting victory with a three-point shot from Jean LeBlanc to top the Soldiers, 62-61!

As the Patriots and Soldiers battled back and forth throughout the first half, neither team able to gain enough ground to build a comfortable cushion.  As the teams headed into halftime, the Soldiers would hold a slight lead of two points, 33-31.

Into the second half, the Patriots were able to find a way to get ahead of the Soldiers, gaining an early lead of seven points.  The men protected their lead for a period of time but slowly saw it evaporate as the Soldiers finally overtook the Patriots with 8:14 left on the clock.  Maryland continued to pad their lead, holding firm between three and five points above the Patriots.  With one minute left to go, the Patriots trailed by five, 55-60.  Twenty seconds later, Lance Harris was fouled and brought to the foul line and made good on both to put the team within three, 57-60.  With time continuing to run down, the men were forced to foul with 00:24 left on the board.  The Patriots caught a lucky break, with the Soldiers making just one of two free throws.  Now trailing by four, 57-61, the Patriots pushed with everything they had.  Forward Tony Hazzard went up strong to grab the offensive rebound and put it back to put the team within two, 59-61, with 00:13 left to go!  Coach Jon Mack immediately called a timeout, giving his team time to set up a strong defense to try and force the turnover.  It worked.  Jean LeBlanc nabbed a crucial steal and took a shot from beyond the arc to grab lead.  Drowning the ball, the Patriots were now up by one point with eight seconds left on the board!  Another timeout from the Patriots bench gave them time to adjust their defense again and put a stop to the Soldiers shooters, securing the win for the Patriots, 62-61, in the most exciting game and victory of the season!

Coach Jon Mack had this to say after the game, "I was pleased with our fight in the second half and our ability to find a way to win today.  This week of competition has been a reminder of how inconsistent we can be and how much we need to continue to improve on a daily basis rather than moments."

Lance Harris was named to the Gallaudet University All-Tournament Team.  Harris recorded 25 points, eight rebounds, three assists and one steal in the win over Maryland Bible College.

The men take a well-deserved rest for the Christmas break.  The Patriots return to the road for their next competition in the Doc Greene Tournament at Juniata College, January 3-4, 2014.  The men face against host school Juniata on Friday, January 3.  The game is set to start at 7 pm.

Go Patriots!