March 8, 2024

Eagles Fall in Region Semifinal

The Eagles were on the road this past week in North Dakota at the NCCAA North Region tournament.

Faith Baptist Bible College

Providence University College

Final

Faith Baptist Bible College

Providence University College

Faith Baptist Bible College

Crown College

Final

Faith Baptist Bible College

Crown College

Faith entered the tournament as the 5 seed and faced off against the 4 seed Pilots from Providence University College. Faith faced Providence early in the season and came out on top, so they were looking for a repeat performance to extend their season.

Faith started the game strong, looking like the more motivated team, and took a double digit lead. Luckily for the Pilots, the Eagles struggled to make baskets as they shot a poor percentage in the 1st half and couldn't extend the lead, but the Eagles dominated on the defensive end as they went into halftime with a 34-25 lead.

The roles reversed early in the 2nd half as the Eagles looked asleep and the Pilots came to play. The Pilots quickly cut down the Eagle's lead. The final 10 minutes of the game were neck and neck as neither team could pull away. Faith faced a five-point deficit with just over a minute to play, but a crucial three-point basket by freshman Parker Lundberg followed by a post finish from senior Jared Pearson found the Eagles tied with under 30 seconds to play. Faith got a stop on the defensive end and called timeout at halfcourt with just over 3 seconds remaining. Out of the timeout, Faith executed their inbounds play that got Lundberg a baseline finger roll layup. With the left-handed feathery touch, Lundberg's layup put the Eagles up two with .8 seconds to play. The Pilots called a timeout, but the Eagle's defense was able to deflect the inbounds pass and Providence could not get off a desperation three as the Eagles earned their 10th victory of the season, 69-67. Senior Jared Pearson led all scorers with 19 points. Junior James Busenitz added 14 points and Lundberg chipped in 13.

The next day, the Eagles had to face the #2 seed Polars from Crown College. This would be a tall task because the Polars beat the Eagles earlier in the season 97-55.

The 1st half started well for the Eagles as they came to battle with the Polars and were able to keep it close. It was not until late in the 1st half that the Polars went on a run and went into halftime with a 45-30 lead.

In the 2nd half, the Eagle's biggest weakness showed as they struggled to score against the Polars' disciplined defense. The Polars continued to extend their lead and the game went beyond the Eagle's reach. In the end, the Polars defeated the Eagles 85-54. Senior Jared Pearson led all scorers with 20 points in the final game of his career and also took home 3rd Team All-Region Award.

The Eagles finished the season with a 10-19 record (6-8 in MCCC play).