Elmira, NY – The Elmira College Men's Basketball team fell to visiting Hartwick College, 71-60, Friday evening in Speidel Gymnasium, in the conference opener for both teams. The win keeps the Hawks perfect at 12-0 and 1-0 in conference play, while the loss drops the Soaring Eagles to 0-11 overall and 0-1 in Empire 8 play.

The first half consisted of a back-and-forth battle with neither team leading by more than four until late in the period. There were six ties and four lead changes throughout the first half. Hartwick took a six point lead with 1:02 remaining in the half. EC responded, scoring two straight baskets to make it 33-31 in favor of the Hawks at the break. Chris Cassidy '14 (Colts Neck, NJ -- Colts Neck) led the Soaring Eagles in scoring with 12 points, shooting 5-for-8 from the field. Josh Keys '14 (Bel Air, MD -- CM Wright) added seven points for EC, shooting 75 percent from the field.

The Hawks used a 19-11 run out of intermission to take a 52-42 advantage with 11 minutes remaining in the contest. The Purple and Gold cut the deficit to seven on numerous occasions but were unable to get any closer. Both teams were even on the boards with 25 apiece, but Hartwick shot 55 percent from the field, while Elmira converted 37 percent of its field goal attempts.

Cassidy led the Soaring Eagle attack with 16 points, while Keys added 12 in the scoring column. Dan O'Brien '14 (Oneonta, NY -- Oneonta) tallied nine points, drilling all three of his attempts from downtown. The men return to action tomorrow when they host conference rival Stevens Institute of Technology at 4:00 p.m.

Hartwick 71 Elmira 60
Box Score