CHAMBERSBURG, PA – Cairn Men's Basketball matched up with Wilson in a battle for postseason seeding on Saturday, falling to the Phoenix 77-74.
 
Graduate guard Corey Baldwin (Henderson, NC / Averett) got the first points on the board for the Highlander as classmate Jaylon Simpson (Atlanta, GA / Belmont Abbey) made back-to-back threes. Wilson (11-14 / 9-7 UNITED EAST) answered with nine points to take the lead back at 20-13. Cairn (12-13 / 9-7 UNITED EAST) got to work in the paint with graduate forward Josiah Hardy (Ashburn, VA / Hampden-Sydney), senior guard Christian Rivera (Cayey, Puerto Rico / Central Buck East), junior forward Andre Burrell, Jr. (Philadelphia, PA / Burlington Co. Tech) and Baldwin all scoring layups with a layup by fifth year forward Isaiah Coleman (Fontana, CA / Clarks Summit University) take the lead back. Wilson created a seven-point lead as makes by Baldwin and Hardy battled back with classmate Jadon Cepeda (West New York, NJ / William Paterson) banking in a pair of layups to keep Wilson ahead by only four at the beak.
 
Three-point shooting was the name of the game to begin the second half as the Highlanders were back in control thanks to deep shots by Cepeda, Baldwin, and two from Simpson. Burrell, Jr. scored a layup through contact for a three-point swing with Cairn holding onto a five-point lead. Wilson tied the game with just over nine minutes to play, holding onto control until Hardy tied things up at 69-69. With two free throws giving the Phoenix the lead back, Burrell, Jr. scored a layup. Wilson pulled up for two on their next trip down the court as Cairn had to foul to get the ball back after two missed shots. As Wilson made all four of their shots from the charity stripe in the last minute, Cepeda made a three to cut the lead to one as Simpson missed the game-tying three at the horn.
 
Simpson led all scorers with a game-high 23 points with four three-pointers and seven rebounds. Baldwin shot 2-2 from deep with 14 points and six boards. Hardy and Cepeda each had eleven points, both with two steals, while Burrell, Jr. had seven points and a team-high ten rebounds.
 
With Saturday's loss, the Highlanders captured the 7 seed in the United East Championship and will host #10 Valley Forge on Wednesday in the First Round at 7 p.m.