Crusaders Drop Close Game to Royals

Front Royal, VA – Christendom Crusaders Men's Basketball team fell short 57-69, in a tough fight against the Regent University Royals on Friday, February 10.

Both the Crusaders and the Royals brought intensity to start the game, with the Royals taking the early lead. However, the Crusaders were able to respond quickly with a layup by Joe Dotson (Senior/Manassas, VA) which helped ignite the Crusader's momentum. Although playing great defense, The Crusaders struggled to click offensively, but with 10mins left in the first, Dotson made two consecutive free throws to bring the Crusaders within 10. Soon after, with the help of a three from Joe Curran (Freshman/Manassas, VA) and a basket by Andrew Heisler (Junior/Front Royal, VA), the Crusaders brought it to a one possession game. The Crusaders were unable to capitalize on their opportunities late in the first, and the half ended with the Royals leading 29-27.

Moments into the second half, John Kennedy (Sophomore/Mount Vision, NY) made a layup to tie the game at 29-29. The Crusaders continued to play hard on both sides of the ball. Although the Crusaders were unable to take the lead, the game remained close. The Royals started to pull away from the Crusaders, but a layup from Kennedy kept the Crusaders in the game. Unfortunately, the Crusaders could not take the lead and fell to the Royals, 69-57.

John Paul Vander Woude (Junior/Nokesville, VA) led the Crusaders in points with 17, followed by Heisler who finished with 11. Heisler led the team with 4 assists. Kennedy contributed on the boards, finishing with 4 offensive and 5 defensive rebounds.

Next Up: The Crusaders will play at Frederick Community College on Tuesday, February 14, at 7:00pm.