By Joseph Caruso
Staff Writer
Fresh off of their impressive New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament victory, the College headed to New Hampshire for a first-round matchup against Eastern University in the NCAA Division III Tournament on March 1.
Including 64 teams, the Lions got an automatic bid to the bracket for winning the NJAC after impressive road victories over Ramapo, Rowan and Stockton to take home a banner. It is the College's first conference title since 2020, and they attempted to make a memorable tournament run after finishing the regular season with a record of 20-8.
Standing in their way were the Eagles of Eastern University, who finished with 20 wins and just seven losses, a conference record of 10-4, and a dominating victory in the Middle Atlantic Conference championship.
The game was played at a neutral site, Keene State in New Hampshire. Going into the contest, the Lions were undefeated in neutral-site matchups, and the Eagles were 2-1.
The College scored the first basket of the game, giving them a 2-0 lead, but that would be the only time through the first half that they were ahead. Eastern would quickly take control, making their presence felt by going on a run to go up by as much as 13, with just under eight minutes remaining in the first half.
Like they have done all season, the Lions battled back. Behind double-digit first halves from sophomores Nick Koch and Matthew Solomon, the deficit was cut to just four going into halftime, as Eastern led 46-42 with 20 minutes to go. For the Eagles, it was fifth-year Jaron Fairweather who had 12 early points to lead the game at the halfway mark.
The match continued to be a seesaw affair, with both teams swapping leads often. Freshman David Alexandre had an impressive second half for the Lions, with multiple steals and fastbreak buckets to keep his team in the game.
However, Eastern stretched their lead to nine with just four minutes to go. With things looking bleak for the College, they strung together multiple defensive stops, and the lead was just three with under two minutes remaining. Clutch free throws from Alexandre and fifth-year James Beckwith cut the lead to just one, but with 53 seconds to go, senior Arkese Claiborne finished a layup to extend the lead back to three. Koch hit two clutch free throws to come within one again, but after a defensive stop on the other end, the College could not convert on their next possession.
At the free throw line for a one-and-one opportunity, senior Kaeshawn Ward came up empty. With just eight seconds remaining, the Lions went the full length of the court, and Matthew Solomon got a floater up at the buzzer with a chance to win, but it hit the rim and missed wide right. The College fell to Eastern by a score of 80-79, ending their season in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
The Lions had five double-digit scorers, but could not string together enough stops to contain the Eagles. Nonetheless, the season was very successful for the College. With leaders Koch and Solomon returning for next year and promising first-year Alexandre among others, there is no reason to expect that the Lions cannot replicate their success over into the next season.
