ROCKLIN, Calif. – Coming off of the Thanksgiving holiday and a loss to UC Merced last Tuesday, the Warriors returned to the court in Warrior Arena Tuesday for the first time in nearly a month. Their opponent, the California Maritime Academy Keelhaulers, put up a tough fight but it was Jessup who came out victorious at the end by the score of 63-61.

Tuesday's game came down to the wire, as the Warriors held a narrow one point advantage heading into the final two minutes. After a jumper by freshman Brandon Lindsey (Tyrone, GA), followed up by a 1-of-2 showing at the line by senior Michael Patterson (Amarillo, TX), the Warriors lead by two with 16-seconds left.
Maritime set up a play for former Warrior, Mike Meserole, for a 3-pointer in the corner. Jessup's defense placed pressure on the shooter, forcing a miss at the buzzer to secure a victory.

"We expected them to go for the win," said head coach Lance Von Vogt post game. The Keelhaulers called timeout with five-seconds remaining, allowing them to draw up one final play to either tie or win the game.

"I believed that they were drawing up a play for Mike Meserole. He's a terrific player, a terrific shooter who we had here during his redshirt freshman year. I know Mike well, and he has the ability to hit tough shots. We were drawing up our defenses to stop them for going for the three."

The first half of the game Tuesday was neck-and-neck, as the Warriors entered the first media timeout tied up at 9-9. Coming out of the timeout, Patterson electrified the Warrior Arena crowd with a dunk to give Jessup the lead, but the Keelhaulers gave little leeway as the game entered the second media stoppage with Jessup up 20-19.
In the second half, again like that of the first, neither team was able to pull away from one another. Senior Cody Wilcox (Grass Valley, CA) hit a 3-pointer with just over 16-minutes remaining to put the Warriors up by three.

The Keelhaulers finally began to steal momentum as the game drew into the final ten-minutes, as senior Elijah Lewis fouled out of the game with a technical foul, allowing Maritime to take a five-point lead.

Jessup retied the game on a three-point-play by senior Tahron Morrison (Fairfield, CA) with just under eight-minutes left. The game would remain close for the remainder of regulation, setting up for the exciting finish.

Morrison finished the game with 7 points and 6 rebounds, but his play down low late in the game played a crucial role in keeping Jessup in the game. Morrison added 2 blocks defensively in his home debut for Jessup.

Senior Chris Murry (Fremont, CA) led the Warriors in scoring Tuesday as he added 12 points to his team's efforts. Patterson finished the day with 8 points and 6 rebounds.

Daniel Radford led all scorers on Tuesday, as the Maritime guard scored 22 points on 6-of-12 shooting. Jessup shot 42.9-percent from the field in the win, as opposed to a 38.6-percent showing from the Keelhaulers.

Jessup will have a short time to prepare for their next game, as on Thursday they will play host to Simpson University on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. This will be the second meeting between the Warriors and Redhawks this season, as the Warriors were victorious 87-69 in Redding on November 15.

"Tomorrow we'll get back to work and put in some film review with the guys," added Von Vogt. "We'll spend about 75-minutes on the court preparing for Simpson, and preparing ourselves to correct the mistakes we had tonight."
William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).