After appearing in the finals of the G-MAC tournament but falling to Ohio Dominican University in a 71-53 blowout, the Hillsdale College Chargers hoped for an opportunity to extend their season.
Gathered in the formal lounge of the Grewcock student union, the players and coached watched a projector screen as the qualifiers for the NCAA Division II tournament were announced.
“We felt like we were in a decent position, but after the upset by Ohio Dominican, we weren’t totally sure,” head coach John Tharp said. “We were on pins and needles a little bit.”
But then the answer came: The Chargers would play at least one more game.
In the program’s first appearance in the tournament since 2012, the 5th seeded Chargers struggled against the 4th seeded Lake Superior State Lakers and suffered an 81-67 loss to end the 2017-18 season.
Though the Chargers bested the Lakers in field goal percentage 54 to 51, Hillsdale had trouble taking care of the basketball, committing 11 turnovers which lead to 14 Laker points.
The Lakers shared the ball well, garnering 18 assists to Hillsdale’s 12.
Senior point guard Akaemji Williams had a complete game for Lake Superior State as he scored 16 points and dished 8 assists while also grabbing 4 rebounds and earning 5 steals.
“They have a great point guard and they play with a great edge,” Tharp said.
After the tip, the Lakers raced out to at 7-0 lead before Tharp called a timeout to settle the team down. Within eight minutes, the Chargers had battled back to even the score at 21 with nine minutes left in the half behind junior forward Gordon Behr’s 9 points on 4-4 shooting.
In response, Laker guard Carson Manger heated up, scoring 9 points on 3 three-pointers over the final six minutes of the second half, helping build a 43-29 Laker lead heading into halftime.
“We went through a stretch where we got a little undisciplined defensively,” Tharp said. “We were taking risks we shouldn’t have which caused us to give up shots. We just got frantic.”
Though the Hillsdale team fought hard to score 38 points in the second half, they failed to stop the Lake Superior offense and the lead proved insurmountable as Lake Superior State’s bench scored 42 points to Hillsdale’s 13.
Though they average 14 points per game, Manger and Lakers guard Malek Adams scored 33 points on blisteringly hot 11-16 shooting.
“We just didn’t control those two kids,” Tharp said.
In their final game in Charger blue, senior guards Ryan Badowski and Stedman Lowry played with confidence and poise. Badowski scored 7 points and grabbed 2 rebounds.
Lowry and junior forward Nick Czarnowski led the team in scoring with 16 points and 4 rebounds each. Lowry also added 2 assists and 2 steals.
“Ryan and Stedman have meant a ton for us,” Tharp said. “Just the quality of human beings, you’re proud of what they’ve done. But you’re also sentimental. When you get done with the season, there’s always a bit of a grieving process.”
Freshman forward Austen Yarian scored 6 points and pulled down 6 rebounds.
The Chargers end the season with a 21-10 record, the team’s best finish since the 2011-12 season.
“You always want more,” Tharp said. “It’s just how we’re wired. But we’re proud of the guys and the effort they put forth.”
Tharp said he was impressed by his team’s consistent play throughout the season, especially in one of the most talented regions in Division II basketball.
“21 wins, we’re proud of that.”
