Franklin Pierce 
Holds Off Pace, 69-68
Sully leads Ravens with 20 points, 
eight rebounds, two assists

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. (January 19, 2006) – Franklin Pierce held off a late charge, including a three-pointer as time expired, to post a 69-68 victory over Pace University in Northeast-10 Conference men’s basketball action at the Goldstine Athletic Center tonight.

            Senior guard Pierre Sully (Jamaica Plain, N.Y./North Cambridge) led Franklin Pierce with a game-high 20 points, hitting 9-of-15 shots from the field, eight rebounds and two assists. Freshman Timothy Munch (Blauvelt, N.Y./Storm King Prep) totaled 16 points as he hit 6-9 from the floor, including 4-6 from three-point range, to go with five rebounds. Junior Sean Mayo (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy) added 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists.

            Franklin Pierce shot 52.1-percent (25-48) from the field for the contest, including 56% (14-25) in the second half, and buried 8-of-17 (47.1%) of its three-point attempts, including 4-6 (66.7%) in the second half. The Ravens overcame 22 turnovers by out-rebounding Pace 36-27 and limiting the hosts to 42.6% (26-61) shooting, including 6-of-20 (30%) from long-distance.            

Senior Neal Wellington (Wheaton, Md./Good Counsel) led Pace with a double double as he netted 16 points and dished ten assists. Classmate Chaka Lightburn (Belize City, Belize) also netted 16 points to go with a game-high nine rebounds and three steals, while sophomore Desmond Quincy-Jones (Rye, N.Y./Rye) added 12 points, six rebounds and three steals.

            Pace used an 11-0 run to take a ten-point lead (30-20) after a Wellington lay-up with 6:01 to play in the first half. Lightburn sparked the run with a conventional three-point play to go with another pair from the charity stripe.

            Franklin Pierce finished the half strong, closing within three points (34-31) after a Mayo bucket heading into the locker room. The Ravens continued the momentum in the second half, jumping out to a four-point lead (38-34) after a Munch lay-up 2:31 into the stanza.

            With the score knotted at 40-40 with 14:39 to play, Franklin Pierce used a 13-2 run to open an 11-point lead (53-42) after a Munch three-pointer with 11:47 on the clock. Munch finished the run with two three’s, while Mayo added four points.

            The Ravens lead was still 11 (55-44) after a pair of Mayo free-throws with 11:12 to play, before Pace came back with a 12-0 run to regain the lead (56-55) after a Randy Wilson (Peekskill, N.Y./Peekskill) hoop with 7:40 left.

            The lead seesawed before Franklin Pierce was able to regain a five-point cushion (65-60) after a Sully jumper with 2:42 on the clock. The teams traded baskets over the next minute before Wilson and Wellington scored around a Raven miss to pull the Setters within a point (69-68) with 22-seconds on the clock.

            Pace had two chances to take the lead in the closing seconds as the Ravens missed a pair of free-throws, including a three-pointer from Gibraltar White (Gautier, Miss./Gautier) as time expired.

Franklin Pierce (9-7, 6-5 NE-10) returns home on Saturday to host Le Moyne College at 3:30 p.m. Pace (8-9, 5-7 NE-10) visits Assumption College on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

BOXSCORE