Easton, Mass. (11/10/17) The Charger's Men's Basketball team tipped off their 2017-2018 campaign today at the Stonehill Tip-Off Tournamant against Stonehill College. The Chargers finished last season 19-12 (12-7 CACC) which locked them in position to compete in the conference tournament. The Chargers defeated Goldey-Beacom and Philadelphia University which propelled them into the conference championship game against Bloomfield. Bloomfield ended up being too much for the Chargers whose season came to an end at the hands of the Bears. The Chargers entered the offseason knowing they had some unfinished business to take care of in the 17-18 season.

The Chargers had gotten off to a slow start but were able to stick with Stonehill for the duration of the first half. The Chargers trailed for most of the first half until they took a two-point lead with just under four minutes to go in the half. It was short lived as the Skyhawks regained the lead and entered half-time with a 34-27 lead. The Chargers shot 40.7% from the filed in the half while the Skyhawks countered with 51.9% from the field. Sayon Charles (Staten Island, NY), Daraja Rodwell (Baldwin, NY), and Michael Richardson (Hackensack, NJ) led the team with six points each.

The Chargers as a team had a tough time shooting from beyond the three-point line only making 2 of 9 and went 3-7 from the free throw line. The Skyhawks also had trouble from three-point range going 3 for 11 but still managed to hold the lead halfway through the game.

In the second half, the Skyhawks came out in control early giving themselves their largest lead of the game at 14 only four minutes into the half. The Chargers started to close gap while the Skyhawks were able to keep the lead for most of the half. With time running out Ian Gardener (Norwalk, CT) made it a one point game with less than a minute to go. The Skyhawks extended their lead to 70-67 when Will Moreton grabbed an offensive rebound and scored with 32 seconds left. The Chargers, now down three, put the ball in Rodwell's hands and nailed a three pointer to tie the game with six seconds left, capping a 16 point second half effort for Rodwell propelling both teams to overtime.

The OT period saw both teams go back and forth until the Skyhawks took a four-point lead. The Chargers then went on a nine-point run which ultimately gave them an 86-83 win for their first of the season. Rodwell led all scorers with 27 points and Daniel Grant (Middletown, NY) scored 19 points, grabbed eight rebounds and recorded nine assists in the win. Richardson added 15 points for the Chargers off the bench.

The Chargers will be back in action tomorrow when they face Assumption College at 4:00 pm when the Stonehill Tip-Off Tournament continues.