February 7, 2009 - The atmosphere, volume level and drama reached heights not seen in Hillsdale College's Jesse Philips Arena in a long time Saturday afternoon.

A crowd of nearly 900 saw the Charger men's basketball team earn its most satisfying win in several seasons with an 86-83 overtime triumph over Grand Valley State University. It was Hillsdale's first win over the Lakers since Jan. 17, 2004, and improves the Chargers to 11-9 overall and 9-7 in the GLIAC this season.

There were enough big shots and huge defensive stands by both teams to fill a highlight reel. And that was just in regulation, which ended in amazing fashion.

The Lakers forced a midcourt turnover and found Justin Ringler for a layup with 11 seconds left in the game. Ringler finished off the three-point play to turn a one-point GV deficit into a stunning 75-73 lead.

Hillsdale College freshman Tyler Gerber made a reverse layup as time expired to send the crowd into a big frenzy, tying the game 75-75 and setting up new life for the Chargers. Senior Travis Worst made perhaps the biggest play of regulation however, when he collected an offensive rebound after Gerber's layup attempt was blocked by Grand Valley's Wes Trammell with five seconds left. The ball found its way back into Gerber's hands for the biggest shot of his career so far.

The Chargers never trailed in overtime, playing tough defense while protecting its defensive boards against the big and aggressive Lakers.

Pete Trammell made two free throws with 1:40 left in overtime to tie the game 81-81. Charger junior Luke Laser then swished a 3-point shot from the right wing to give Hillsdale an 84-81 lead. A Laker layup cut the deficit to one, but then Hillsdale's Tony Gugino capped off his best game of the season with the finishing points.

Gugino made three out of four free throws in the final three seconds to close out the win. He finished the game with a season-high 29 points to go along with 10 rebounds, two blocks and four steals.

Charger coach John Tharp made a brilliant move in the final three seconds of the game, inserting seven-foot center Chris Skaggs to bother a length-of-the-court inbounds pass by the Lakers. The long pass bounced untouched out of bounds, giving Hillsdale possession without the Lakers even getting a shot off on its last possession of the game. Skaggs' height played a factor in the errant pass.

Gerber played a season-high 27 minutes, most of those coming in the second half and overtime, and had 15 points, five assists and a steal. Laser played with energy and confidence, scoring 14 points along with three rebounds and three steals.

Senior Keith MacKenzie added 12 points and four assists for the victorious Chargers. Hillsdale was 27-for-35 from the free throw line, countering some amazing shooting from the charity stripe by the Lakers. Grand Valley State went 28-for-30 from the free throw line in the game.

Hillsdale turned the ball over just 12 times in the game, and shot 60 percent from the field in overtime.

Pete Trammell led the Lakers with 22 points.

The Chargers will host Wayne State University at 8 p.m. Thursday at Philips Area. Click on the link below for the box score from Saturday's game.


Box score