STAUNTON, Va. – In the first of three conference contests this week, the Southern Virginia University Men's Basketball team (11-11, 4-7) fell to Mary Baldwin University (12-9, 7-3) for the second time this season.

With the absence of Malakai Olson, Tyler Kartchner was inserted into the starting lineup for the second straight game, and he got off to a great start. The sophomore tallied six points and three rebounds in the opening three minutes of play to begin what would be a solid showing.

The teams were neck and neck up to the under-12 media timeout, with the Squirrels clinging onto a 16-14 advantage. Following the break, Mary Baldwin went on a 14-2 run that was ignited by excellent shooting from beyond the arc. The Squirrels drained three-pointers on three consecutive scoring drives, all by different players, to put a stranglehold on the contest. Another shot from downtown, the sixth by the team, by big man Vernon Fraley with just over a minute remaining in the first half would give Mary Baldwin its largest lead of 17 points.

The Squirrel's excellent shooting from deep did not change in the second half, with the team adding three more threes in the opening eight minutes. Back-to-back three-pointers by Zach Sloan pushed the Mary Baldwin advantage to 24 points. Two straight layups would increase the lead to 28, the Squirrel's largest of the contest, with just over 13 minutes of play remaining.

On the following possession, Bryan Tapia would knock down a corner three to get the Knight bench off their feet. However, the momentum gained by the Tapia field goal was taken away just as quickly as it was earned, as Jaden Ignacio would restore the 28-point advantage following another three-pointer for Mary Baldwin.

Following a 5-0 run by Southern Virginia, Quentin Hart would score six straight points to retake the momentum. However, Dane Ibsen would go on a 9-0 run, knocking down three three-pointers, to cut the deficit to 20 with just over six minutes remaining.

Despite solid play from the Knights bench in the closing minutes, the Squirrels continued expanding their lead behind excellent shooting from the field—42.9 percent overall and 33 percent from beyond the arc.

Koy Berge drained a three from the wing, his first of the season, in the final Southern Virginia possession to the delight of the bench. Sam Jex also connected on two long-range attempts, tallying seven total points to go along with two rebounds, an assist, and a steal.

Koa Baker and Tyler Kartchner both came just shy of recording double-doubles, with Baker leading the team with 13 points and pulling down nine rebounds and Kartchner grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds while adding eight points.

Baker's nine rebounds move him to No. 1 on the single-season rebounding list, passing Tanner Johnson, who registered 210 total rebounds in the 2005-06 campaign, and Ryan Farnworth, who tallied 208 two seasons prior.   

The Knights will now prepare for back-to-back home matches this weekend, beginning with Pfeiffer on Friday night.

To keep up with this weekend's games and for all the most up-to-date information regarding Southern Virginia University men's basketball, visit knightathletics.com and follow @knight_hoops on Instagram.