Seahawks Sweep Season Series with Victory at Salisbury
Salisbury, Md. - The St. Mary's College of Maryland men's basketball team swept its season series against Salisbury University with a 79-64 road victory Monday evening in Capital Athletic Conference action. Four players scored in double figures for the Seahawks who notched their third consecutive victory, winning five of their last six outings.
Trailing 5-4 early in the contest, the Seahawks (16-4, 9-2 CAC) responded with a 21-8 run over the next eight minutes that was capped with a lay-up by junior guard Camontae Griffin (Baltimore, Md./Dunbar) to make it 25-13 in favor of the visitors. The Seahawks controlled the contest throughout the remainder of the half and pushed their lead to as many as 15 points at 33-18 after a jumper from senior center Alex Irmer (Alexandria, Va./Wakefield) with 3:53 remaining in the half.
Sophomore guard Alex Franz (Catonsville, Md./Cardinal Gibbons) led all scorers at the half with 11 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field for St. Mary's. Irmer followed closely with ten points at intermission while connecting on 5-for-7 from the field. Salisbury was led by junior guard Devin Jones (Severn, Md./Old Mill) who scored eight points in the opening stanza.
Salisbury (9-11, 6-5 CAC) responded with the first two baskets of the second half to cut the deficit to 37-27 with 18:53 remaining, but that would be as close as the Sea Gulls would get. The Seahawks answered with a 12-4 run over the next four minutes to put the contest out of reach. The lead would grow to as many as 22 later in the half after an old-fashion three-point play by sophomore guard Ben Biber (Sterling, Va./Potomac Falls) with 3:24 remaining.
Irmer finished with a game-high 18 points for the Seahawks along with six rebounds. Franz posted a solid game with 17 points, seven rebounds, seven assists, and seven steals. Griffin contributed 10 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 from the foul line, while senior forward Calvin Wise (Bel Air, Md./Calvert Hall) notched a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Sea Gulls were led by junior guard Greg Palmer (Salisbury, Md./Salisbury Christian) who scored 17 points to go along with his team-high seven rebounds. Jones and sophomore center Chris McGrew (Burtonsville, Md./Paint Branch) each added 10 points in the losing effort.
St. Mary's held a 44-32 advantage on the boards and forced 16 Salisbury turnovers in the contest while the Sea Gulls could manage just six mishandles for the Seahawks. St. Mary's also held a 46-20 scoring advantage in the paint.
The Seahawks will return to action on Wednesday evening at home against Hood College. The game is scheduled to begin at 8:00, following the women's contest which will start at 6:00.
