ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – Sophomore Nate Ortiz's (St. Charles East HS, St. Charles, Ill.) 10-foot jumper in the lane gave Augustana a 108-107 lead with 25.8 seconds remaining in the third overtime Saturday and the Vikings got defensive stops on Carthage's final two possessions to come away a 109-107 winner in the teams' CCIW Tournament quarterfinal at Carver Center. Coach Steve Schafer's club improves to 7-4 on the season and moves on to semifinal play at Wheaton on Tuesday, March 9. The Firebirds' season comes to an end with a record of 5-7.
 
Carthage had taken a 107-106 lead with 1:44 left in the third OT on Garrett Horner's six three-pointer of the afternoon. Josh Washburn followed with a steal and after a timeout, the Firebirds had a chance to extend their lead. However, Matt Hanushewsky (Hersey HS, Arlington Heights, Ill.) came from the weak side to tip away a post entry pass and Luke Johnson (Longmont HS, Longmont, Colo.) corralled the ball with 46 seconds on the clock. Augustana ran 20 seconds off before Ortiz drove from the right side, pulled up just inside the free throw line and dropped in the go-ahead shot off the glass.
 
At the other end, Carthage's Sean Johnson missed a short baseline jumper and Luke Johnson was there to grab his ninth rebound of the game. He was fouled with 8.5 seconds left and converted the first free throw, but left his second short, with Filip Bulatovic snaring the rebound for the Firebirds. Bulatovic rushed the ball up court and found an open Luke Barach in the left corner, but Barach's potential game-winning three was off the mark at the buzzer.
 
The contest was tight throughout, with 31 lead changes and 23 ties. Neither team managed a lead of more than six points in the 55 minutes of action. Hanushewsky scored 11 first-half points as Augustana took a 39-36 advantage to intermission.
 
Daniel Carr (Regis Jesuit HS, Highlands Ranch, Colo.), who was hampered by foul trouble and limited to two points in the opening stanza, got going offensively in the second, dropping in 16. Carter Duwa (Pleasant Valley HS, Bettendorf, Iowa) added 15 to help offset a combined 28 by Washburn (16) and Bulatovic (12). Duwa's triple just inside the one-minute mark of regulation tied it at 81-all, before he and Washburn traded misses to send the game to overtime.
 
Carr's layup off well-executed inbounds play with 2.5 seconds left in the first extra session tied it at 89-all, resulting in overtime number two. The Viking big man lasted 1½ minutes into the second OT before finally picking up his fifth foul. With Justin Bottorff (Quincy Notre Dame HS, Quincy, Ill.) having already fouled out, Schafer's club was left with no one over 6' 3" on the floor. A pair of Duwa free throws pulled Augustana even at 97-all with 1:19 on the clock and after the teams traded defensive stops, the Vikings survived three point-blank looks for the Firebirds that didn't fall in the final seconds.
 
Freshman Tyler Knuth's (Guilford HS, Rockford, Ill.) second three-pointer of the third overtime gave the hosts a 106-104 lead with just under two minutes to play. Horner hit his sixth three of the day to regain the advantage for Carthage and set the stage for Hanushewsky's big defensive play and Ortiz's game-winner.
 
Duwa led Augustana with 26 points in a team-high 48 minutes. Carr recorded his eighth consecutive double-double, finishing with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Hanushewsky dropped a career-high 20 and Johnson (12) and Ortiz (10) scored in double figures as well. Bottorff added seven points and eight rebounds
 
Bulatovic tallied 35 and tied Chandlor Collins' 2009 CCIW Tournament record with 20 rebounds. Washburn added 27 points and Horner 24, while Sean Johnson scored 16 and grabbed 13 rebounds.
 
The Vikings finished 34 of 76 (.447) from the field and hit 15 of 34 (.441) three-point attempts, tying the program record for makes in a game. Schafer's bunch went 26 of 32 (.813) from the free throw line. Carthage shot .444 (36-81) from the floor, .467 (14-30) from three-point range and 21 of 33 (.636) from the foul line. The Firebirds won the battle of the boards 51-49 and committed 13 turnovers to the Vikings' 12.