LANGHORNE, Pa. – The Cairn University men's basketball team lost, 92-89, in Colonial States Athletic Conference (CSAC) action at home against the University of Valley Forge on Wednesday evening, splitting the season-series with the Patriots.
 
Cairn (10-9, 4-4 CSAC) and Valley Forge (5-10, 2-7 CSAC) engaged in an up-tempo offensive game from the first tip, with the Highlanders gaining the early 17-6 edge just over six minutes into the game. Cairn had its largest lead of the contest at 16 (29-13) midway through the frame, before the Patriots went on an 18-4 run to cut the deficit to just two (33-31) with 6:03 left in the half. The Highlanders utilized a 14-8 run to close out the first half to lead 47-39 at intermission.
 
In the second half, the Patriots made their push, starting the frame on a 12-3 run to take their first lead of the contest (51-50) just three minutes in. Valley Forge continued to up the pressure, extending its lead to 10 (65-55) at its larges point with 14:20 remaining. The Highlanders stayed in it, slowly chipping at the deficit and reclaimed the lead at 74-72 after a basket by senior Jesse Rivera (Doylestown, PA / Central Bucks East) with 7:39 to play. Both teams traded the lead back-and-forth from that point, with neither team holding more than a one-possession advantage for the rest of the game.
 
The Highlanders trailed 89-88 after another Rivera basket on the drive with 27 seconds to play. After that, an offensive foul on Patriot forward Derian Bradford gave Cairn possession and an ensuing foul on the Highlanders' possession sent sophomore Aytor Alberto (Willemstad, Curacao / Clarks Summit University) to the line. Alberto split a pair of free throws to tie the game (89-89) with 23 seconds remaining, before Valley Forge guard D'Andre Butler buried a step back triple with three seconds remaining. Cairn had one last chance down just one possession, but turned it over back to the Patriots to ice the game.
 
Both teams shot their best marks of the season from the field, with Cairn at a 54.1% (33-61) clip and Valley Forge shooting 58.9% (33-56). Cairn was also a respectable 41.4% (12-29) from the perimeter, while the Patriots posted a scorching 63.2% (12-19) mark from long range. The difference came down to the charity stripe, with Valley Forge posting am 82.4% (14-17) mark from the line compared to Cairn's 52.4% (11-21) free throw percentage.
 
Cairn was led by junior Noah Mitchell (Leesburg, VA / Toccoa Falls College) who dropped a career-high 26 points on a nine-for-16 (56.3%) mark from the field including a career-high six three-pointers. Mitchell was followed by Rivera and Alberto, who each added 20 points, with Rivera posting a perfect eight-for-eight mark from the field, as well as dishing out seven assists and snagging three steals (both game-highs). Alberto's 20 points were a season-high and his six rebounds were a team-high.
 
The Highlanders will be back on the floor on Saturday, January 29 when it travels to La Plume to wrap up their season series with Keystone College in a conference matchup at 1 p.m.