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POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. – The Vassar College men's basketball team continued to make school history with a 107-89 win over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute on Tuesday evening in the Athletics and Fitness Center. This is the first time the Brewers have ever beaten two Liberty League teams with scores of 100 or more and the largest tally against conference schools.
Sophomore Johnny Mrlik recorded a season-high 30 points from a 10-from-13 performance from the floor, including 6-of-9 from beyond the three-point arc, and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. It is the third straight outing that Mrlik didn't miss from the line. Mrlik's strong night also included eight rebounds, four assists, four blocks and one steal.
Sophomore Erikson Wasyl netted a layup at 19:23 and was followed by RPI's
Tyler Gendron hitting a jumper on the next possession at 19:07, tying the game at 2-2. Wasyl hit a field goal in retaliation, giving Vassar the 4-2 advantage that was never relinquished for the next 38:56 of the game clock.
Wasyl's jump shot was the catalyst of Vassar's 39-13 run that spanned 13 minutes and put the Brewers (17-6, 8-5 Liberty League) the 41-15 lead over the Engineers (8-15, 6-8 Liberty League) with six minutes left in the first half.
Vassar had its largest lead of the evening why junior Alex Snyder (Rutland, VT/Rutland) and Mrlik hit back-to-back layups for a 27-point, 58-31 lead with 17:47 left in the game.
RPI chipped at the deficit until it was within 11 points, 94-83 with 1:50 remaining.
Tyler Gendron found the net with a layup but was fouled for a chance to complete the three-point play. He netted his extra point but Vassar compiled 11 free throws and a layup from freshman Otis Osman, ending the game with the 13-6 run and setting a new marker in Vassar history.
Vassar was never sent to the line in the first half but dropped in 16-of-19 from the charity line in the second half (84.2 percent). The Brewers' shooters found success on 39-of-66 shots from the floor (59.1 percent), including 13-of-28 from three-point land (46.4 percent).
RPI was 32-for-92 (34.8 percent) from the field and 11-of-33 (33.3 percent) from beyond the three-point arc. The Engineers hit 14-of-18 (77.8 percent) from the free throw line with a perfect 10-of-10 in the second portion of the game.
The 'Bash Brothers' Snyder and junior Luka Ladan each tallied 16 points while Snyder pulled in 12 boards for his eighth double-double of the year and Ladan grabbed eight rebounds with five assists. Wasyl recorded 14 points while junior Curtis Smith (Mastic, NY/Eastport South Manor) added 13. The pair combined for four assists and five rebounds. Senior Evan Carberry enjoyed his final regular season game on the AFC court with nine boards and eight tallies while dishing out three assists.
Nick Keefe led the way for the Engineers with 17 points and
Reggie Colas added 14 to the total.
Jonathan Luster grabbed a team-high six rebounds as the Brewers out-bounded the Engineers 51-40.
The Brewers will next travel to St. Lawrence University in Canton, NY for an 8:00 pm tip-off on Friday, February 21. The next day, they wrap up their regular season with a 4:00 pm start in Potsdam, NY at Clarkson University. RPI will next host Rochester Institute of Technology on Friday at 8:00 pm and then head to Schenectady, NY to end its season at Union College.