TIFFIN, Ohio - The Dragons turned key offensive rebounds into scores in the second half, scoring 16 points on second-chance opportunities, but it was the Storm who capitalized on misfires down the stretch as Tiffin (3-13, 1-8 GLIAC) fell to Lake Erie (5-9, 1-6 GLIAC) Saturday afternoon at the Gillmor Center.
Senior Rafael Cuellar led the Dragons with 14 points and also added three key offensive rebounds, two of which led to buckets in the second half. Junior Karl Finley added 13 points, five boards and three blocks while freshman Joe Graessle added 13 points and four boards. Junior Brandon Harris added a pair of blocks while junior Keenan Barlow led the team with seven boards.
Antonio Kidd came up big for the Storm with 19 points off the bench. Brandon Smith hit six of eight from the field for 14 points. Garrick Sims contributed nine rebounds and six points.
Lake Erie came out punching and recorded 10 of the first 13 points, with an old-fashioned three-pointer by junior Travis Spahr being the only scoring for TU. A Finley trey with 11:03 left brought Tiffin within 15-10, but Lake Erie pushed its lead out to 33-21 with a Kidd layup with 1:32 left. Spahr answered with a jumper 15 seconds later for Tiffin, but neither team scored the rest of the way as the visitors took a 10-point advantage into intermission.
A three-pointer by Lake Erie's Alex Davis gave the Storm their biggest lead of the ballgame, but Tiffin answered with a quick 8-0 run thanks to a pair of field goals from Cuellar, a Spahr free throw and a Finley three. Lake Erie got it back to a 41-35 lead with 14:30 left, but back-to-back old threes and a capper by Harris gave Tiffin the 43-41 advantage, its first lead of the game. Another old-fashioned three-pointer, this time by LE's Brandon Smith, gave the Storm the lead for good.
Lake Erie led 66-60 with 22 seconds left, but Graessle nailed a three to bring the game down to one possession. Matt Grendel nailed both free throws for the Storm, but another trey by Graessle brought Tiffin within two with two seconds left. Barlow stole the inbounds, but the desperation fall-away shot failed to draw iron as Lake Erie survived.
Tiffin returns to action next Thursday when it makes the frigid trip north to take on Wayne State. Game time is 6 p.m.
