Men Earn Conference Win

The Eagle men moved to 1-0 in the Midwest Christian College Conference (MCCC) Tuesday night with a win over visiting Emmaus Bible College. Faith is now 2-3 on the year with the win.

On a night where both teams struggled offensively, Faith was able to generate enough second chance opportunities off of offensive rebounds and get to and convert from the free throw line to pull out the win. 

In what was an omen of things to come, the two teams played scoreless basketball for the first four minutes of the game. Faith's Aaron Leistikow was finally able to get the Eagles on the scoreboard when he converted two free throws to give Faith a 2-0 lead. Offensive struggles continued throughout the half, with the teams combining for only 22 points in the first 10 minutes of the game, and Faith holding a slim 33-28 halftime advantage. Faith had pushed the lead to nine with a minute left, but two buckets by Emmaus in the final minute and two empty possessions by Faith allowed Emmaus to pull back within five. 

The second half was more of the same, with Faith briefly increasing the lead only to see turnovers and missed point blank shots allow Emmaus to hang around. With a seven point lead and nine minutes to play, Faith finally broke through into double digit margins on the back of Jon Luke Talton, who scored eight points over the next four minutes while the Eagles defense held Emmaus to just two points to give Faith a 13 point lead. Emmaus would get no closer than nine in the final five minutes as the Eagles held on for the 65-53 win. "While the continued offensive struggles are frustrating, I was very happy with the overall defensive effort tonight. Our willingless to play hard on the defensive end allowed us to earn a win on a night when our offense and ball security was lacking," noted coach Fincham.

Talton and Aaron Leistikow accounted for 40 of the Eagles 65 points. Jon Luke finished with 21, while Leistikow recorded a double double with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Leistikow also added five assists and two blocks, while Willie Felderman grabbed four steals. Faith shot 38% from the floor but was able to hold Emmaus to 37%. Faith also out rebounded the visitors 45-25 including 17 offensive rebounds.

Next up for the Eagles is an exhibition contest with nationally ranked NAIA 1 opponent William Penn University on Thursday. Faith will then travel to Minneapolis, MN on Saturday for a game with AFLBS.