Senior Day Win Caps Busy Weekend of Basketball

ANKENY, Iowa—Jayce Goergen received a standing ovation prior to Saturday's Senior Day tipoff against Calvary University as he was honored for a spectacular basketball career and for his testimony and leadership on and off the court (more on that in a future article). The day ended as well as it began with Faith rolling to a 90-73 win to cap a busy weekend of basketball action.

The weekend started with a tough matchup against Ozark Christian College (12-6) who has had the Eagles' number this year. The quick and sharpshooting Ambassadors defeated the Eagles earlier this season narrowly after nearly blowing a 19-point second half lead. Faith kept things tight in the first half in Ankeny, leading by as many as six with just over eight minutes left in the first half. A late surge by Ozark put the Eagles in a very manageable 39-35 deficit at halftime.

Faith was never able to recover in the second half as Ozark built its lead to as many as 14 with five minutes remaining. Ozark shot 51.5% for the game, consistently getting to the rim with 48 points in the paint on their way to an 87-74 victory.

Saturday's game against Calvary offered the Eagles a chance to end the weekend on a positive note. The team responded with some hot shooting in the first half, draining eight three-pointers, including two each from Jayce Goergen, Carson Odle, and Seth Freeman. Faith's lead blossomed to 15 by halftime.

The Eagles weren't done with their sharp shooting in the second half as the team connected for 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, finishing an incredible 13-of-24 from three point distance for the game. Six Eagles finished in double figures, led by Chris Barnette (19), Jared Pearson (16), Jayce Goergen (12), Josh Baucum (11), and Carson Odle and Seth Freeman with 10 each.

With Saturday's win, the Eagles enter the final week before conference tournament play with a record of 11-10. Faith travels to Maranatha Baptist University on Tuesday for a 4 p.m. tip, and finishes the weekend with two games in Missouri against CCCB and Spurgeon College. The Eagles fell to both Maranatha and Spurgeon in overtime earlier this season.