Chatham men secure first-ever PAC title

Chatham men secure first-ever PAC title

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2018-19 PAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament
Quarterfinals
Tuesday, February 19
7 p.m. No. 1 Saint Vincent 80, No. 8 Thiel 58 (Quarterfinal 1) Box score
7 p.m. No. 2 Grove City 81, No. 7 Geneva 75 (Quarterfinal 2) Box score
7 p.m. No. 3 Westminster 95, No. 6 Waynesburg 68 (Quarterfinal 3) Box score
7 p.m. No. 4 Chatham 55, No. 5 W&J 54 (Quarterfinal 4) Box score
Semifinals
Thursday, February 21
7 p.m. No. 4 Chatham 54, No. 1 Saint Vincent 51 (Semifinal 1) Box score
7 p.m. No. 3 Westminster 59, No. 2 Grove City 48 (Semifinal 2) Box score
Championship
Saturday, February 23
7:30 p.m. No. 4 Chatham 64, No. 3 Westminster 61 Box score

NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. (pacathletics.org)--Fourth-seeded Chatham University battled back from a seven-point second half deficit to earn a 64-61 victory over No. 3 Westminster College in the title game of the Presidents’ Athletic Conference (PAC) Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament Saturday night. 

No. 3 Westminster (13-15) hosted Saturday's title game at Buzz Ridl Gymnasium. 

The PAC title is No. 4 Chatham's first in any team sport since joining the league in 2007-08. 

As the winner of this year's PAC Championship Tournament, Chatham will receive the league's automatic qualifying bid to this year's NCAA Division III Championship. The selected Division III Championship teams as well as the first and second round site selections will be announced Monday, February 25 at 12:30 p.m. (EST) on ncaa.com. First and second round games are scheduled for Friday-Saturday, March 1-2.

2018-19 PAC Championship Tournament highlights
 
Saturday, February 23 :: New Wilmington, Pa.
Title game
No. 4 Chatham 64, No. 3 Westminster 61 Box Score
No. 4 Chatham locked up its first-ever PAC title with Saturday's win at No. 3 Westminster ... Senior guard Isaiah Brown (Detroit, Mich. | North Pulaski) paced a pair of Chatham players in double figures, finishing with 22 points and three rebounds ... Senior guard Anthony Bomar (Bethel Park, Pa. | Bethel Park) added 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals ...  Chatham shot 45.3 percent (24-of-53) from the floor ... The Cougars hit 13-of-27 (48.1%) second half shots ... Sophomore guard Isaac Stamatiades (Elkridge, Md. | Avalon) led Westminster with 13 points and six rebounds ... Junior guard Dylan O'Hara (Girard, Ohio | Girard and junior guard Lloyd Chatman (Columbus, Ohio | Reynoldsburg) both finished with 12 points ... Chatham trailed 37-32 at the half ... Both teams collected 34 rebounds in Saturday's title matchup.
 
Thursday, February 21 :: Latrobe, Pa.
Semifinal
No. 4 Chatham 54, No. 1 Saint Vincent 51 Box Score
No. 4 Chatham advances to its first-ever title fray with Thursday's upset win at No. 1 Saint Vincent ... Senior guard Will Sanderr (Allison Park, Pa. | North Allegheny) paced the Cougars offensively, scoring a game-high 25 points ... Sandherr added five rebounds and a pair of steals ... Senior forward Marc Wells (Brentwood, Pa. | Brentwood) finished with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting to go along with a team-best seven rebounds and a pair of blocks ... Senior guard Anthony Bomar (Bethel Park, Pa. | Bethel Park) totaled seven points, four rebounds and five assists ... Sanderr's three-pointer with 5:05 remaining in regulation proved to be the eventual game-winning bucket ... Senior forward Tom Kromka (Monroeville, Pa. | Gateway) led three Saint Vincent players in double figures, finishing with 18 points and six rebounds ... Sophomore guard David Stephen (Winter Garden, Fla. | Dr. Phillips) added 15 points and six rebounds while sophomore forward Ryan Dutton (Baden, Pa. | Slippery Rock) chipped in with 12 points and four boards ... Chatham's win snapped Saint Vincent's 14-game home win streak this season.       
 
Thursday, February 21 :: Grove City, Pa.
Semifinal
No. 3 Westminster 59, No. 2 Grove City 48 Box Score
No. 3 Westminster secured a spot in the league's championship tournament title game for the first time since 2003 with Thursday's victory over No. 2 Grove City ... The Titans won their only PAC title in 2003 as the then-No. 1 seed, downing No. 2 Bethany 97-88 ... Westminster junior center Blake Payne (Ashtabula, Ohio | Jefferson Area) registered his third double-double of the season, finishing with 10 points and a game-high 10 rebounds .. He also added four blocks ... Sophomore guard Isaac Stamatiades (Elkridge, Md. | Avalon) finished with 11 points, seven rebounds a pair of assists ... Senior guard Austin Armwood (Columbus, Ohio | Westerville North) chipped in with six points, six rebounds and seven assists ... Sophomore guard Justice Rice (Monessen, Pa. | Monessen) paced Grove City with 16 points and five rebounds. 
 
Tuesday, February 19 :: Latrobe, Pa.
Quarterfinal
No. 1 Saint Vincent 80, No. 8 Thiel 58 Box Score
Saint Vincent jumped out to a 42-20 halftime lead thanks to 16 first half points from sophomore guard David Stephen (Winter Garden, Fla. | Dr. Phillips) ... Saint Vincent's second half lead swelled to as many as 26 points ... Senior forward Tom Kromka (Monroeville, Pa. | Gateway) and senior guard Mike Simmons (New Kensington, Pa. | Kiski Area) each finished with a game-high 19 points for the Bearcats ... The 19 points equaled Simmons' career high ... Stephen finished with 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting and added four assists ... Saint Vincent outscored Thiel by a 46-20 margin in the paint and turned the Tomcats' 20 turnovers into 19 points ... Junior guard Nyric Gosley (Williamsport, Pa. | Williamsport) led Thiel with a season-high 16 points ... Sophomore forward Daquan Simmons (Capitol Heights, Md. | Central) and sophomore guard Terrance Holloway (Farrell, Pa. | Farrell) added 14 and 13 points, respectively ... Monday's postseason meeting was the first between the schools since No. 3 Saint Vincent defeated No. 6 Thiel (79-61) in the quarterfinal round of the 2014 tournament. 
 
Tuesday, February 19 :: Grove City, Pa.
Quarterfinal
No. 2 Grove City 81, No. 7 Geneva 75 Box Score
Grove City held off a late Geneva rally to sew up its first appearance in the championship tournament semifinals since 2010 ... The top seed in 2010, the Wolverines won their seventh league title ... Grove City had dropped eight-straight postseason games prior to Monday's win ... Grove City finished with four men in double figures ... Junior forward James Wells (Waterville, Vt. | Worcester Academy) led all scorers with 19 points ... Wells added seven rebounds and three assists ... Junior guard Nate Peters (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio | Cuyahoga Valley Christian) chipped in with 18 points, four rebounds and four assists ... Sophomore center Garrett Clark (Erie, Pa. | Mercyhurst Prep.) and senior guard Isaac Williams (West Middlesex, Pa. | West Middlesex) finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively ... Senior guard Eric McGee (Tampa, Fla. | Seffner Christian Academy) led Geneva with 18 points and four assists ... Junior forward Nick Rusyn (Salem, Ohio | Salem) finished with 14 points and eight rebounds ... Junior forward Ethan Moose (New Castle, Pa. | Neshannock) added eight points and a game-high 13 rebounds ... Monday was the first postseason meeting between the two longtime rivals.
 
Tuesday, February 19 :: New Wilmington, Pa.
Quarterfinal
No. 3 Westminster 95, No. 6 Waynesburg 68  Box Score
Senior guard African Grant II (Warren, Ohio | John F. Kennedy) registered his first career double-double in Monday's win, finishing with a career-high 20 points to go along with a game-best 11 boards ... The Titans had five finish in double figures ... Sophomore guard Isaac Stamatiades (Elkridge, Md. | Avalon) added a 16-point, 10-rebound double-double ... Junior guard Lloyd Chatman (Columbus, Ohio | Reynoldsburg) and sophomore guard Anthony Ritter (North Lima, Ohio | South Range) each finished with 14 points ... Senior guard Austin Armwood (Columbus, Ohio | Westerville North) chipped in with 10 points, four assists and three rebounds ... Westminster's 95 points were a season high ... ?The Titans knocked down eight three-pointers in the opening half ... Senior wing Jake Dougherty (New Bethlehem, Pa. | Redbank Valley) led Waynesburg with 14 points, three assists and a pair of rebounds ... Junior guard Frank Bozicevic (Monroeville, Pa. | Gateway) added 12 points, three assists and two steals ... Monday was the first postseason meeting between Westminster and Waynesburg since 2013, when No. 8 Waynesburg claimed a 74-54 play-in game victory over No. 9 Westminster. 
 
Tuesday, February 19 :: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Quarterfinal
No. 4 Chatham 55, No. 5 W&J 54 Box Score
Sophomore guard Zach Queen (Jeannette, Pa. | Hempfield Area) gave W&J a 54-51 lead after draining a three-pointer with 25 seconds remaining in regulation, but Chatham senior guard Will Sandherr (Allison Park, Pa. | North Allegheny) scored four points in the final 18 seconds, including the game-winning layup with 5.6 seconds to play, to help the Cougars claim their first-ever home postseason victory ... Senior forward Marc Wells (Brentwood, Pa. | Brentwood) had a season-high 15 points to lead Chatham ... Wells added eight rebounds and a pair of blocks ... Senior guard Isaiah Brown (Detroit, Mich. | North Pulaski) and Sanderr each finished with 13 points ... Senior guard Anthony Bomar (Bethel Park, Pa. | Bethel Park) totaled seven points, six assists and a game-high 10 rebounds ... Sophomore guard Cameron Seeman (Loveland, Ohio | Archbishop Moeller) led W&J with 10 points and four rebounds ... Freshman guard Primo Zini (Morgantown, W.Va. | Trinity Christian) added nine points and four rebounds.