Beaver Falls to Fayette in Close Game
Lemont Furnace, PA -- Beaver Falls to Fayette in Close Game
By: Chris Rotondo
The Beaver men's team went on the road Saturday to take on Penn State Fayette in what became a close game. Despite a strong comeback in the second half, Beaver fell to Fayette 86-81.
Fayette gained an early lead in the first half, scoring the first 13 points of the game in the first 5 minutes. Sophomore Dominique Stevenson finally put Beaver on the board with a layup 5 minutes into the half. Fayette continued to dominate after that, as Beaver struggled to gain possession of the ball. Beaver started to show some discipline halfway through the first, gaining possession of the ball. Senior Eric Gallupe made 3 sets of 3-point jump shots, helping to move the team closer to their opponent on the board. Despite a last second jumpshot from freshman Andrew Brady, Beaver trailed 51-40 at the half.
As the second half began, Beaver took notice of the things they had failed at in the first. The team worked hard to narrow the lead during the second, starting with a 3-pointer from senior DJ Austin. The team maintained control of the ball early on, as they made several layups within a few minutes. Beaver was 5 points away from a tie, but Fayette then made a pair of 3-pointers, giving Beaver another drawback. Fayette started to get their groove back, though in the final minutes of the game, both teams had a hard time overcoming the other.
With 2 minutes left in the game, Beaver was down by 8 points. They were still hopeful that they could turn things around, as Brady made a layup, assisted by Austin. With 25 seconds left in the game, Gallupe made another 3-pointer, putting the team 5 points away from a tie. He went on to make another 3-pointer with just 3 seconds left, but it was a little too late. Despite coming close, Beaver would lose the game 86-81.
The team is now 7-14 in their overall season and 4-8 in their PSUAC conference matches. They will go back on the road Monday when they take on Penn State Greater Allegheny.