For Immediate Release

eureka, illinois

Red Devils fall to North Park on the road

November 20, 2007

CHICAGO, Ill. — Eureka College fell to the North Park Vikings for the second time in four days in a non-conference men's basketball game Tuesday night, this time by the count of 73-48.

After Eureka (0-3) played North Park (2-1) nearly even for 27 minutes on a neutral floor four days earlier in an 80-67 loss, the Red Devils hung close for roughly 12 minutes on the road in the second meeting. Brady Wildenradt (Delavan, Ill./HS) and Matt McComb (Fairview, Ill./Spoon River Valley) hit back-to-back three-pointers, giving EC its largest lead at 14-10. After North Park took the lead back, Mark Darnall (Lake Mills, Wis./HS) put Eureka ahead briefly again at 17-16.

The Red Devils managed only two field goals over the final 11 minutes of the first half, allowing the Vikings to mount a 23-5 scoring run that pushed the margin up to 17. Eureka scored the last three points of the period on free throws to make the halftime score 38-24.

Jason Gordon came alive for North Park after the break, tallying all 12 point his points as the Red Devils could not get any closer than 13 the rest of the way.

Sophomore Michael Zasada (McHenry, Ill./HS) grabbed 12 rebounds, tying a career high in the process. He also added nine points. McComb led EC with 11 points, three steals and two assists. Darnall chipped in eight points off the bench, including two treys as he continued to see increased time on the court. The Red Devils shot well from the charity stripe, posting a 76.5 percentage (13-17). That success did not carry over to the rest of the floor, however, as EC shot just 29.4 percent (15-51) on the night.

Contrarily, North Park struggled to a 52.4 percent (11-21) mark at the line, but posted a relatively usable field goal percentage of 42.4 (28-66). The Vikings' Nick Williams led all players with 15 points.

The Red Devils next will play their second road game against a ranked opponent Saturday afternoon at No. 18 Elmhurst College. Game time is set for 3:00 pm.

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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