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Men's Basketball

Western New England College upsets Springfield

Box Score

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. â€" Senior guard Jon Godbout (Bristol, CT) scored 22 points and sophomore guard Ryan Hernandez (Hampton Bays, NY) came off the bench to pour in 13 of his career high 19 points in the second half to lead Western New England College to a dramatic 77-69 upset win over Springfield College in the second day of action at the fifth annual Pioneer Valley Men's Hoop Classic. Both players made the All-Classic Team for their performances.

This was the first victory for the Golden Bears over the Pride in 30 years (dating back to the second game of the 1975-76 season) and only the third win in 25 all-time meetings against their city rival.

Western New England College (2-3) opened the game with a 7-0 run and held a 33-27 halftime advantage.

Springfield (1-5) chipped away at the lead and tied the game at 40-40 on a rare four-play play by senior guard Derek Yvon (East Longmeadow, MA) with 15:43 left in the contest. The Pride took its largest lead at 52-46 after a basket by Yvon with 9:30 remaining in the game.

The Golden Bears then staged their own rally going ahead for good at 59-58 on a basket by Hernandez at the 6:15 mark.

Freshman guard Matt Maynard (Paterson, NJ) played a key role in the victory by scoring 11 of his career high 14 points in the second half.

The Golden Bears set a Classic record for three-point field-goal percentage (66.7%) after making 12-of-18 shots.

Yvon led three Pride players scoring in double figures with a game high 26 points to make the All-Classic Team. Junior forward Damian Farley (Natick, MA) chipped in with 15 points while senior forward Mike DeCesar (Acton, MA) had 13 points.

In the first game, sophomore guard and Classic MVP Andrew Olson (San Diego, CA) scored 17 points and had five assists to lead Amherst College to a 102-77 victory over Westfield State.

Junior forward Dan Wheeler (Bloomington, IN) contributed 16 points and seven rebounds to earn a spot on the All-Classic Team. Also scoring in double figures were senior guard John Bedford (Ridgewood, NJ) and sophomore center Kevin Hopkins (Greenfield Center, NY) who each had 13 points, and senior forward John Casnocha (San Francisco, CA) who tallied 10 points.

Amherst, ranked fourth in the d3hoops.com poll, set a Classic record for points and three-pointers (16-for-26). The Jeffs remain unbeaten at 4-0.

Sophomore guard Tony Collier (Colchester, VT) led the Owls (3-3) with 18 points while senior forward Mike Jurkowski (Belchertown, MA) made the All-Classic Team after scoring 11 points and pulling down a game high eight rebounds.

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Players Mentioned

Jon Godbout

#3 Jon Godbout

Guard
5' 11"
Senior
Ryan Hernandez

#15 Ryan Hernandez

Guard
6' 1"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Jon Godbout

#3 Jon Godbout

5' 11"
Senior
Guard
Ryan Hernandez

#15 Ryan Hernandez

6' 1"
Sophomore
Guard