By: Colton Steiner
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. - The Bluffton Beavers hit the road and headed to Indiana to go up against the Fightin' Engineers of Rose-Hulman. In a game that would be close for much of the 40 minutes, the hosts were able to find a late surge to defeat the Beavers 85-78, moving Bluffton to an overall record of 1-6 and to an 0-2 mark in the HCAC. With the win, the Fightin' Engineers improve to 4-2 on the season and stay undefeated in conference play at 2-0.
Right out of the gate, Ian Snelling (Erlanger, Ky. / Dixie Heights) would drop a triple off an assist from JD Stokes (West Harrison, Ind. / Franklin County), who would follow that up with an old fashioned three-point play to put Bluffton up 6-0 a minute and a half into the contest. After a 13-4 run from the Fightin' Engineers, a turn around jumper from Brendan Williams (South Bend, Ind. / Mishawaka) made it a one-point deficit with Rose-Hulman leading 13-12 with 12:19 left in the half. The hosts would be able to to up 32-22, but the Beavers would close out the half on a 12-5 run to trail 34-37 at the break.
Coming out in the second half, Bluffton would start the half like they finished the first, outscoring the Fightin' Engineers 6-2 with Andre Irvin (Lewis Center, Ohio / Olentangy Orange) rolling in a layup to give the Beavers a 40-39 lead two minutes into the period. Despite William Layfield (West Chester, Ohio / Lakota West) hitting a pair of free throws to put Bluffton up 44-41, a pair of Rose-Hulman layups gave the home team a 47-44 lead. The Beavers would keep the contest close for most of the second half, not giving the Fightin' Engineers more than a two possession lead. Trailing 75-71 with 2:44 left, Matt Ray (Indianapolis, Ind. / Herron) would drive to the rim and get the bucket and the foul, making it a one point ballgame. Rose-Hulman would answer with back-to-back lay ins, giving them a four point lead with 1:23 left in regulation. While Bluffton managed to pull within three after a pair of free throws from Ian Snelling, they would be unable to mount a comeback in the final minute as the Fightin' Engineers came out victorious, handing the Beavers a 85-78 loss.
JD Stokes would record a career high in scoring, dropping 19 to go along with seven boards and three dimes. Right behind him was Ian Snelling, who scored 17 on 5-of-6 shooting with a 3-of-4 mark from behind the arc and snagging five boards. Nevin Robson (Kenton, Ohio / Hardin Northern) would add 13 with Matt Ray rounding out the double-digit scoring with 10 in the contest.
Despite allowing Rose-Hulman to hit 50.9 percent (29-of-57) of their shots from the floor, the Beavers were right behind them with a 45.5 percentage (25-of-55) in the contest. Bluffton had a solid day from the charity stripe, hitting 21-of-28 (75.0 percent) while the Fightin' Engineers knocked down just 23-of-33 (69.7 percent) from the line. Despite keeping the rebounding battle close with the home team holding a 36-35 advantage, the aggressive defense from Rose-Hulman forced 13 Beaver turnovers that led to 14 Rose-Hulman points.
Bluffton will be off a week and return to action on Saturday, Dec. 13 when they host Transylvania University in a double-header, with tip off set for 2 p.m. with the women's squad set to play after the conclusion of the men's game. Come out and support your Beavers!
-Beavers-