By Nairem Moran · nmoran@smcm.edu

St. Mary’s City, Md. – Four starters reached the double-digit plateau as the St. Mary’s College of Maryland men’s basketball team doubled their win total from last year and extended their win streak to four in a row Saturday evening. St. Mary’s (6-6) moved to .500 on the season with a 74-67 non-conference victory over William Peace University (5-5).

How It Happened

  • The Seahawks never trailed in the game but the hosts could never quite shake off William Peace, holding a double-figure margin just three times the entire game for a total of 91 seconds.
  • St. Mary’s showed its excitement to be back on the court with a 7-0 start to the game as forwards Spencer Schultz (Clear Spring, Md./Clear Spring) and Naheed John (Rockville, Md./Massanutten Military [Va.]) were a force to contend with in the paint. Trey Bryantpulled the Pacers within three at 15:52 but the Seahawks widened the gap to 24-16 by outscoring the visitors, 17-12, over nearly 11 minutes.
  • Down the stretch, WPU cut the deficit to two four times in the final 3:25 before first-year wing Zach Spooner (Washington, D.C./St. John’s College) sent St. Mary’s into halftime up 35-31. John scored half of the team’s 22 points in the paint as he finished the first half with 11 to lead all scorers.
  • Camden Ferguson drained his third triple of the evening just six seconds into the second stanza off a steal and assist from Mikal Gaylord to make it a one-point game. However, the Pacers would get no closer as St. Mary’s used a 19-10 to stake a 10-point advantage at 12:47 on a layup by junior forward Rodney Christian (Randallstown, Md./Sherwood).
  • The Seahawks would lead by 10 at the 11:29-minute mark on a Schultz layup and again at 5:42 on a Christian foul shot.
  • WPU closed the gap to four on a Ferguson three-pointer with 1:49 remaining in the game and again with 30 seconds on the clock on a pair Gaylord free throws but the Pacers missed their final four attempts.
Naheed John ’22 – Photo Credit: Bill Wood

Inside the Box Score

  • Schultz tallied 13 points and 10 boards for his fourth double-double of the season to go along with a career-best five blocks while John put up 13 points and four rebounds plus season-bests of four blocks and two assists.
  • The duo of Schultz and John combined for nine of the team’s season-high 12 blocks.
  • Junior guard Reggie Rouse (Baltimore, Md./Calvert Hall) contributed a dozen points, seven assists, and five caroms while junior forward Phil Newsome (Mitchellville, Md./Potomac) added 11 points in the win.
  • Bryant collected a game-best 13 rebounds and notched 10 points while Ferguson finished with 14 to pace William Peace.

Up Next for the Seahawks

  • Jan. 5 vs. Frostburg State (4-5) – MPOBARC Arena – Capital Athletic Conference contest – 4 p.m. 

David M. Higgins II, Publisher/EditorEditor-in-Chief

David M. Higgins II is an award-winning journalist passionate about uncovering the truth and telling compelling stories. Born in Baltimore and raised in Southern Maryland, he has lived in several East...