LANGHORNE, PA- The Highlanders hosted Messiah College in an out-of-conference matchup last night, seeking their first win of the season, and their first victory over the Falcons since before 2001.
 
The Highlanders, led in the early stages by the continuing emergence of junior Jordan Koczman, jumped out to a 15-9 lead over the first 7 minutes. Koczman's solid play on the interior and knockdown jump shooting boosted the Highlander offense, and paired with the stellar play of Malachi Hall and Julian Collazo, Cairn narrowly led the Falcons over the first 20 minutes entering the break with a slim lead of 42-40. Koczman shot a perfect 5-5 from the floor in the opening frame for 11 points, while Hall stuffed the stat sheet with 9 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists, and Collazo chipped in with 6 points and 5 assists.
 
Messiah and excellent guard Colin Sareyka battled back early in the 2^nd half, skating through the lane time and again and showing excellent touch around the rim. Searching for a solution, Coach Jason O'Connell inserted freshman guard Donovan McCrae who showed a great ability to frustrate Sareyka, skinnying up over a myriad of screens and forcing turnovers on his first two possessions in the game. A Sareyka layup put the Falcons up 4 with 3 minutes remaining, but a jumper from Collazo, layup from Hall, and free throw from freshman Antoine Nunnally brought the Highlanders within 1 point with only a minute and thirty seconds left. Unable to seal the game with free throw shooting, the Highlanders relied on grit, shown no better than the play of McCrae. After missing two straight free throws the freshman guard dove on the floor, retrieving his own miss to give the Highlanders a crucial extra possession. After misses from both teams and thirty seconds left on the clock, Hall fed Koczman on a pick and pop and the junior stepped into the jumper, knocking down the eventual game winner with ease and putting the Highlanders up 77-76. Koczman would hit two more free throws to seal the deal and Cairn earned their first victory of the season in thrilling fashion 80-78 over the visiting Falcons.
 
The Highlanders play was a true team effort highlighted by:
Malachi Hall- 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals
Julian Collazo- 16 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists
Jordan Koczman- 15 points
Josh Decker- 12 points
 
Cairn will be in action again this Saturday against Medgar Evers College at 2:00 PM.