SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (December 12, 2015) - Junior guard Mike Gelineau (Waltham, Mass.) hit the game-winning three-pointer with five seconds remaining, lifting Western New England University to a 61-58 non-conference victory over Clark University this afternoon in its first semester finale at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.
 
Despite being limited to eight points in 18 minutes due to foul trouble early in the game, Gelineau came up big for Western New England down the stretch, connecting on a pair of clutch three-pointers late to help send the Golden Bears into their three week break with a hard earned win.
 
Trailing 56-55 after a layup by Clark junior Joe Atkinson (Milford, Mass.) with 2:47 left, Gelineau put Western New England back in front (58-56) with a trey at the 1:32 mark, before drawing a key charge on the other end to give the Golden Bears the ball back with just over a minute remaining. The Cougars forced a turnover on the ensuing Western New England possession, leading to Atkinson's game-tying layup with 18 seconds on the clock, but Gelineau's final shot proved to be the difference.
 
Coming off a career-high 25-point performance in Western New England's win over Roger Williams on Tuesday, senior guard Luis Agrait (South Hadley, Mass.) continued his strong play today with a team-high 13 points on 5-of-10 shooting, including 3-of-6 from long range, to go with a team-leading six rebounds and two assists. Senior center Zack Askew (Middletown, Conn.) matched Agrait with 13 points, going 3-of-7 from the field and 7-of-8 from the free throw line, while also grabbing six boards and adding three blocks and two steals. Freshman guard Tyler Johnson (Vernon, Conn.) posted another solid effort with 11 points, three rebounds and two assists in 28 minutes off the bench, while senior forward Don Stephens (West Palm Beach, Fla.) chipped in with seven points and four boards in 17 minutes of action.
 
Atkinson led Clark with a game-high 16 points on 5-of-6 shooting, including 2-of-2 from three-point distance, while knocking down 4-of-5 free throws and pulling down four rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench. Junior forward Evan Lerner (Hopedale, Mass.) also went 5-of-6 from the field, finishing with ten points and seven boards, and freshman Luca McCormick (Bradenton, Fla.) added six points and eight rebounds for the Cougars.
 
Clark led 5-4 three and a half minutes into the contest, before a three-pointer by Agrait gave the Golden Bears a lead they would not relinquish for the remainder of the half. Western New England went up six (11-5) on a layup by senior Tizauni Boyles (Lynn, Mass.) at the 12:16 mark, but the Cougars eventually pulled back to within a point (25-24) on a three by freshman Brendan Kitteridge (Clinton, Mass.) with 3:02 left in the half. Sophomore Nelson Zayas (Springfield, Mass.) connected from beyond the arc with 1:50 on the clock and John Pisacreta (Andover, Mass.) added two free throws for Clark as the Golden Bears carried a three-point (29-26) edge into the locker room.
 
Western New England stretched its lead to five (31-26) as Askew went 2-for-2 from the charity stripe 35 seconds into the second half, but the Cougars answered with a 10-0 run, which included three-pointers from McCormick and Pisacreta, over the next three minutes to give the visitors a five-point advantage (36-31), their largest of the game. Stephens hit a couple of big treys to pull the Golden Bears to within two, but Western New England trailed until Askew made two free throws with 7:15 remaining. The Golden Bears went up three (54-51) when Agrait hit a three from the corner with 5:28 on the clock, and Atkinson tied the score with a triple of his own 24 seconds later. Johnson made the second of two free throws at the 4:44 mark to put Western New England back in front by one (55-54), before Atkinson's layup with 2:47 left gave Clark its final lead of the game (56-55).
 
Western New England (3-5, 1-2 CCC), which has won two straight heading into the break, returns to the AHLC on Saturday, January 2 to host Fitchburg State in non-conference action. Clark (1-8, 0-0 NEWMAC) will look to snap its eight-game skid against Wentworth on December 29.