Box Score

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – It was anything but easy for ninth-ranked Augustana Tuesday, but Joe Kellen's (Rockford Lutheran HS, Rockford, Ill.) three-point play with 34 seconds left lifted the Vikings to a 79-77 win over Elmhurst at Carver Center. The victory earned Coach Grey Giovanine's squad a share of its fourth consecutive CCIW championship—just the fourth time in league history that feat has been accomplished. The Bluejays end their season 13-12 overall and 6-10 in the conference.
 
The Vikings fell behind barely more than a minute into the game and would trail for nearly 35 minutes. They were still down 66-53 with 8:25 to play, but a pair of Kellen free throws and one of two by junior Nolan Ebel (Regis Jesuit HS, Denver, Colo.) whittled the deficit to 10 (66-56) with seven and a half minutes left.
 
Augustana's run continued with consecutive three-pointers from senior Dylan Sortillo (Bettendorf HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) and junior Brett Benning (Dakota HS, Davis, Ill.) prompting a timeout by Elmhurst with 6:45 to play and a 66-62 lead.
 
The teams traded blows for the next two minutes, with the Bluejays getting two free throws from Brandon Auker and a Ryan Patton field goal and the Vikings answering with another three from Benning and a dunk from sophomore Donovan Ferguson (Downers Grove South HS, Darien, Ill.). Finally, with 4:12 left, junior Chrishawn Orange (Jacobs HS, Algonquin, Ill.) hit the first of two free throws to pull his team even (70-70) for the first time since 18:55 of the first half.
 
After Elmhurst's Lance Gardner split a pair of charity tosses, Benning drilled another trey that gave Augustana its first lead since the opening seconds. He added two free throws on the next trip and Kellen hit one of two to give the Vikings a 76-71 lead with 2:46 remaining.
 
The visitors wouldn't go away, getting a Justin Fox putback, two Jeremy Ireland free throws and a Patton field goal to re-take the lead 77-76 with 41.5 seconds left. However, Ebel found Kellen in the left corner and the junior drove the baseline for a layup, drawing the fifth foul on Tyler Turner in the process. Kellen added the free throw to give Augustana a 79-77 advantage.
 
Elmhurst called timeout with 28.3 seconds left, but with sophomore Roman Youngblut (Assumption HS, Davenport, Iowa) playing great defense, the Vikings forced a Bluejay shot clock violation and Sortillo was able to run out the final 3.5 seconds to clinch the win.
 
Elmhurst controlled the first half, leading by 15 (21-6) at the midway point before eventually taking a 41-33 lead to the locker room at the break. Auker had 17 points and Patton 16 in the opening 20 minutes.
 
Benning led Augustana with a career-high 24 points. Orange added 18, along with four assists, before fouling out with 1:36 remaining. Sortillo tallied 14 of his 17 in the second half. Ferguson finished with team highs of seven rebounds and three blocked shots and Ebel matched Orange's team-high four helpers. Patton and Auker finished with 30 and 20 points, respectively, for Elmhurst.
 
Augustana's win, which lifted the team's record to 20-5 overall and 12-4 in the conference, combined with Illinois Wesleyan's loss to North Central Tuesday in Bloomington, Illinois, earned the Vikings a share of their fourth straight CCIW title. The only other programs to capture four straight are Wheaton (1956-59), Illinois Wesleyan (1964-67) and Augustana (1971-74).
 
Augustana also won the league's tiebreaker by virtue of its two wins over North Central and will host this weekend's CCIW Tournament. Illinois Wesleyan (19-6, 12-4) and North Central (18-7, 11-5) will square off in a rematch of Tuesday's game on Friday, February 23 at 5:00 p.m., with Augustana taking on Wheaton (17-8, 10-6) at 7:00 p.m. The winners of Friday's semifinals will meet Saturday, February 24 at 7:00 p.m. for the CCIW Tournament title and the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
 
Doors will open Friday at 3:30 p.m. Ticket prices are $6 for adults and $3 for seniors and students. Children under the age of five will be admitted free of charge, along with students with a valid CCIW school ID.