Mitchell College Gets One Point Victory

The Mitchell College men's basketball team put on a thrilling performance on Sunday, beating the buzzer for a one-point win over Salve Regina University. The following information was provided by David Longolucco, sports information director at Mitchell College:

Senior forward Jeff Gomez (New London, Conn./Grasso Tech) hit the game-winning shot as time expired to give the Mitchell College men’s basketball team a 65-64 victory over Salve Regina University on Sunday in the final game of the Mitchell College Tipoff Tourney Showcase at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Mitchell (2-1 overall) never led in the second half until the final bucket went down. The Mariners trailed 64-63 when senior Alex Vess (Middletown, Conn./Xavier) pulled down a big defensive rebound with 23 ticks left on the clock to give his team a final crack at the win.

Mitchell called timeout with 2.5 seconds remaining after its initial play broke down. The Mariners then inbounded from underneath their own basket, and senior Julio Contreras (Boca Raton, Fla./West Boca) threw a bounce pass to Gomez at the far block. The pass got away from Gomez and he retrieved it at the three-point line, and after a shot fake and quick dribble to his left, he drained the winning baseline jumper from a step inside the arc.

The Mariners trailed by as many as 12 points in the second half but fought their way back behind a 10-for-27 effort from long range. Senior Paul Jefferson (Waterbury, Conn./Waterbury Arts Magnet School) led Mitchell with 19 points while freshmen Trace Lanson (Boca Raton, Fla./Berean Christian School) and Joshua Ford (Jersey, City, N.J./Saint Anthony) added 14 and 13, respectively.

Ryan Birrell (Hope, R.I./Scituate) led all scorers with 23 points but was the only Salve Regina (1-2 overall) player in double figures. Jeff Bielefeld (Littleton, Mass./Littleton) chipped in with nine points and a game-high 14 rebounds and Joshua Fuhrmeiser (Bonn, Germany/St. George’s) added nine points.

Mitchell couldn’t take advantage of a slow start by Salve Regina, which was playing in its second game in as many days. The Seahawks shot 1-for-18 to start the contest but trailed only 14-10 with 7:19 remaining in the first half. Patrick Dinneen (Medfield, Mass./Xaverian Brothers) sparked his team with a jumper with 6:45 to go that ended a near seven-minute stretch without a field goal, and Salve Regina closed the half by hitting eight of its final 13 shots to lead 32-24 at the break.

Birrell paced the comeback with 11 points in the first half, including 10 in the final 6:13 despite missing time due to foul trouble. Bielefeld was also big on the glass and had 10 rebounds by the break. Lanson led Mitchell with 11 points at the intermission.

Salve Regina increased its lead to double digits in the opening minutes of the second half and held a 49-39 edge with 12:28 to play. Mitchell responded with a 10-0 run that included seven straight points from Jefferson and tied the game at 49-49 on a three-pointer by Ford with 10:30 left.

The Seahawks weren’t fazed and built the lead back up to eight at 62-54 following a three-pointer by Birrell with 5:57 to go. Birrell’s final points of the day came on a lay-up with 2:50 remaining that gave Salve Regina a 64-59 lead. Mitchell then cut the deficit to one behind layups from Jefferson and Contreras to set the stage for the final minute of play.

Gomez had only one basket before checking into the game for the final play following the Mitchell timeout. He finished with four points and four rebounds in 16 minutes.

Five players were named to the All-Tournament Team following the contest. Jefferson (16.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg) and Ford (15.0 ppg, 13.0 rpg) earned honors for the Mariners, joining Salve Regina’s Birrell (20.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and Bielefeld (5.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg) and St. Joseph’s College’s David Louison.

Mitchell will next play at the Coast Guard Academy on Tuesday, November 22 at 6 p.m. Salve Regina returns to action at home against Daniel Webster College on Tuesday at 7 p.m.