Jan 28, 2007 By Dan Schmitt For The 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – For the first 10 minutes of each half, it was all Waynesburg. For the second 10, it was all Grove City, but the Yellow Jackets, led by senior Beau Wilson, ultimately prevailed 75-68 at the Marissa Fieldhouse Saturday night in a game that went down to the final minutes. After jumping out to a 30-18 lead in the first half that saw Wilson knock down three treys, the Yellow Jackets fell victim to a 12-6 Wolverine run to close out the first half. Wilson was benched after only 11 minutes with two first-half fouls, but he, along with teammate Jeff Linden, still led all scorers with nine points at the break.

As a team, Waynesburg shot 48.1 percent from the field, including 53.8 percent (7-of-13) from beyond the three-point arc.

The second half of play closely resembled the first as the Yellow Jackets once again came out firing, expanding their lead to 20 points at 62-42 with 10:20 remaining in the game.

In the run, senior Jeff Nero ignited the Waynesburg crowd with a one-hand dunk from the baseline. Nero would finish the game with nine points and six rebounds before fouling out with 1:41 remaining

Grove City mounted a furious comeback with just over 10 minutes remaining, outscoring the Yellow Jackets 24-5 in a run that lasted over eight minutes.

With the momentum swinging back to the Wolverines, Wilson stepped up once again, knocking down his fourth three of the game with 1:06 remaining in the second half and only one second on the shot clock. Wilson finished with a game-high 18 points on 6-of-12 shooting.

“I didn’t really know how much time was left on the shot clock,” said Wilson. “I was wide open so I just took it.”

Wilson was joined in double figures by Linden and Marc Lodovico, who scored 12 and 11, respectively.

For the Wolverines, sophomore Ryan Gibson led the way with 15 points, while senior Craig Hallman added 12 points and six boards.

The Yellow Jackets finished shooting 25-of-50 from the floor, bettering their record to 5-1 when they shoot 50 percent or better.

“The key was, our defensive intensity created a really good rhythm for us to play in,” said Waynesburg coach Frank Ferraro. “When you shoot the ball like we do, rhythm is vital.”

“I give Waynesburg a lot of credit,” said Grove City coach Steve Lamie. “They shot the ball well. I mean 50 percent, that’s something we can’t afford.”

Waynesburg squandered numerous opportunities to lengthen their lead, shooting a lowly 12-of-25 from the free throw line, continuing a trend of poor shooting from the charity stripe over the last several games.

The win marks the second win over the Wolverines this season, but only the second PAC win for the Yellow Jackets all season. Waynesburg currently stands at 9-9 overall and 2-5 in conference play while the Wolverines fall to 10-9 and 3-4 in the conference.

Waynesburg is back in action Wednesday, Jan. 31 as they host Washington & Jefferson at 7:30 at the Marissa Fieldhouse.