HARTFORD, Conn. – The fourth-ranked Trinity College Men's Basketball team rolled past visiting Western New England University, 79-42, in the Third Round of the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Tournament at Oosting Gymnasium Friday night. The Bantams rise to 27-3 overall, while the Golden Bears finish with a 23-7 record.
 
For the second straight season, the Bantams advance to the Elite Eight Round to face Catholic University (25-5) Saturday night at Oosting Gymnasium at 7:15 p.m. for a spot in the NCAA Division III Men's Championship Final Four in Fort Wayne, Indiana next week.
 
The Bantams had three scorers in double figures, led by senior Will Dorion with a team-high 15 points, shooting 6-of-8 from the floor and 3-of-5 from three-point, with three assists. Junior Jarrel Okorougo tallied 15 points with five rebounds, while classmate Henry Vetter logged 11 points with a game-high five assists and two rebounds. Sophomore Jared Berry chipped in seven points off the bench, and junior Paul Jordan grabbed a team-high six rebounds in the win.
 
Brian Geitner paced the Golden Bears with 10 points and two assists. Jake Harrison had seven points and five rebounds, while Andrew Byfield added six points and a game-high seven rebounds.
 
The rivals battled back-and-forth over the opening minutes as Dorion netted seven quick points to give Trinity a 13-7. The Bantams held the Golden Bears to two points over the next five-plus minutes as Trinity expanded their lead to 24-10 behind three-point plays from Vetter and senior Sean Macarchuk. The Bantams defense continued to stifle WNEU, limiting the Golden Bears to three points over the final eight minutes of the period, executing a 16-3 run to take a 40-13 lead into halftime. 13 points is the fewest points the Bantams have surrendered in any half this season.
 
The squads went shot-for-shot early in the second half as Western New England trimmed the gap to 55-32 behind 10 points from Geitner. The Bantams expanded the lead to 70-39 with 6:03 to play with a 15-7 run, featuring five-point efforts from Berry and junior Drew Lazarre. Sophomore Paul Ippolito and first-year Marley Stewart chipped in four points a piece down the stretch to lock up the 79-42 win.
 
The Bantams outrebounded the Golden Bears, 40-36, and controlled the paint, 36-18, and bench play, 31-11. Trinity shot 31-of-62 (50%) from the floor, including 7-of-21 (33.3%) from three-point, and 10-of-17 (58.8%) from the foul line. Western New England connected on 16-of-53 (30.2%) from the field, 5-of-22 (22.7%) from three-point, and 5-of-17 (29.4%) from the free throw stripe.