For Immediate Release

lincoln, illinois

January 9, 2007

Red Devils squeak past Lincoln Christian 73-69

The thin line between the top and bottom of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's basketball standings was in full view once again Tuesday night. Eureka College (7-3, 4-0 SLIAC) remained unbeaten in league play and at the same time tagged another frustrating loss on Lincoln Christian College (2-7, 0-4). The Red Devils survived walking a tightrope all night in a game that featured 11 ties and 13 lead changes.

The Preachers, whose two previous home conference games ended in a one point loss to conference leading MacMurray College and a two point defeat versus preseason favorite Webster University, scored seven consecutive points to take a 9-4 lead. That would be the largest lead for either side in the opening frame.

Tim Peffer (Hinckley, Ill./Hinckley-Big Rock) scored 10 points and A.J. Richard (Gibson City, Ill./GCMS) added nine as EC led at the break 35-32. Lincoln Christian stayed close thanks to hot three-point shooting. The Preachers started out four-of-five from behind the arc led by Alex Bond's perfect three-for-three.

Even though Richard left the game with an injury in the first minute of the second half and did not return, it appeared Eureka would run away with an easy victory following a 9-2 run that put the Maroon and Gold on top 44-36. But following a timeout, the Preachers got right back in the game by scoring the next eight points to square the count at 44.

Lincoln Christian led briefly on two occasions, but EC senior Chris Tarpley (Pekin, Ill./HS) dropped in four big shots over a two-minute span to put Eureka in front to stay, 56-51 with 8:49 remaining. Tarpley scored 14 of his game-high 20 points after halftime.

The Red Devils' lead fluctuated between six and one for the remainder of the contest. Peffer and Mark Darnall (Lake Mills, Wis/HS) each made critical three-pointers down the stretch and Michael Zasada (McHenry, Ill./HS) grabbed eight of his nine rebounds off the bench in the second half.

Trailing 71-67, the Preachers took over with just under a minute to play with a steal, but the Eureka defense did not allow them to get a quick shot. David O'Malley's jumper with 12 seconds to go cut Eureka's led to two. The Red Devils were able to in-bound to Peffer, their best free throw shooter. As a junior last season, he made 52 out of 53 free throw attempts. Peffer was fouled with 10.4 seconds on the clock and calmly sank both ends of the one-and-bonus to give EC its final margin.

The Red Devils shot 63 percent (15-24) in the second half, while limiting the hosts to a 39 percent (14-36) clip. Eureka point guard Matt McComb (Fairview, Ill./Spoon River Valley) had a solid all-around game leading all players with four assists and four steals in addition to his six points and five boards.

Conference scoring leader Adam Everett was held six points under his average, but still led Lincoln Christian with 14 points and seven rebounds. O'Malley had 13 off the bench.

The Red Devils' three-game conference road swing continues Friday, January 12 when they visit Webster University for a 8:00 pm tip-off. The women's game begins the doubleheader at 6:00 pm. Less than a day later, EC will be on the court at Westminster College for a 3:00 pm contest versus the Blue Jays.

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For More Information Contact:

Brian Sullivan

Sports Information Director

Eureka College

300 E. College Avenue

Eureka, Illinois 61530

309-467-6456

bsullivan@eureka.edu