Pensacola, FL — Despite leading by 14 points with under 12 minutes to play, the Eagles were unable to hang on and suffered a heart-breaking 59-58 home defeat at the hands of the Welch College Flames.

The Eagles looked dominant in the early going of last night's ball game against the Welch College Flames. An early 12-3 run topped off by a three pointer by Deont'e Hallums helped the Eagles get off to a fast start in the ball game. The Eagles were able to command the game in the 1st half despite not having many great scoring opportunities. Both teams battled defensively and forced each other to take contested shots.

In spite of the early deficit, the Flames battled back to cut the deficit to just 3 points with under 4 minutes remaining in the 1st half. The Eagles would quickly answer. A 7-2 run sparked by Ian Johnson would help the Eagles widen their lead back to 9 points. The Eagles would have an opportunity to build on their lead as the buzzer sounded in the 1st half, but Jared McCrillis' three-point attempt came up just short.

In the 1st half, the Eagles shot 35% from the floor compared to just 20% for the visiting Flames. Ian Johnson added 10 points and 7 rebounds in the 1st half. The Eagles were able to outrebound the Flames in the 1^st half, but the Flames would win the turnover battle.

At the half, Head Coach Mark Goetsch was asked about his team's up-and-down performance in the 1st half. He said, "We didn't space the floor very well in the early going. The Flames were trying to guard the three-point line, but we failed to get the ball inside to Dakota [Pratt]. We needed to be more selective offensively and to look for better shots."

Heading into the 2nd half, the Eagles looked poised to build on their 8 point halftime advantage. Six early points by Ian Johnson and Dakota Pratt helped the Eagles widen their lead to 10 points. A thunderous dunk by junior Jared McCrillis brought the fans to their feet and helped the Eagles widen their lead even further. The Eagles would go on to lengthen their advantage to as many as 15 points with 16 minutes remaining in the ball game.

The Flames were able to hang around due in part to a strong performance by JT Jones, who would finish the night with 21 points. With 10 minutes left in the ball game, the Flames would go on a run that threatened the Eagles once sound lead. Led by JT Jones and Chris Simon, the Flames would go on a 15-1 run to bring them within 2 points with 2 minutes left on the game clock. A pair of free throws by Dakota Pratt helped the Eagles widen their lead, but the excitement would be short lived.

JT Jones hit a long three-pointer to give the Flames a 1-point advantage with just 8 seconds remaining on the clock. A quick foul by the Eagles would send the Flames to the line with an opportunity to widen their lead. Flames guard Luke Charlton calmly buried 1 of 2 free throws to give the Flames a 2-point advantage. A long pass down-court by the Eagles led to a foul on freshman guard John Clay. The foul put Clay, a 93% free-throw shooter, on the line with a chance to tie the game. He would make the 1st free throw but the 2nd came up just short and sealed the Eagles fate. The Eagles would lose the ball game 59-58.

Asked after the game about what went wrong, Coach Goetsch said, "With 10 minutes to go, we just stopped playing defense. The Flames had a 15-1 run. Some of it was just poor choices; we gambled on some plays that we shouldn't have and put some of the other guys on the team in tough positions."

In the defeat, the Eagles shot 35% from the floor but shot just 19-37 from the free throw line. The Eagles outrebound Welch College 60-36 in the ball game, but turned the ball over 26 times compared to just 17 for the visiting Flames. Ian Johnson secured a double-double with a 15-point and 11-rebound performance. Sophomore Dakota Pratt also had a double-double, scoring 13 points and adding 11 rebounds.

With the loss, the Eagles dropped to 3-15 on the season. The Eagles next game will be on the road against Belhaven University on Tuesday, January 30 at 7:00 p.m. in Jackson, MS.