LYNDONVILLE, VT

The UMPI Men's team has their first winning streak of 2026, as they took down the VTSU-Lyndon Hornets with a second half surge. Though the Owls fell behind early, they would not be denied from putting up a season high 89 points on Saturday afternoon.

How it Happened:

Lyndon looked good early on and grabbed a 22-13 lead with 11:37 in the first half. UMPI ensured it was short lived by knocking down shots and getting stops to tie it at 26 with still eight minutes to play in the half. From there, the Hornets would take a one-possession lead and UMPI tied it, over and over for the remainder of the period. With 1:45 to go, two free throws tied it at 45. Neither team scored the rest of the half as they went into the locker room with that score. UMPI shot 48% as a team in the first half, which was a great improvement, and a clip they'd like to start repeating throughout this big conference stretch.

In the second half, the Owls took the lead for the first time, albeit a small one. It stayed tight with UMPI up 63-60 with 12:20 to play. UMPI dominated the rest of the game after that. They outscored Lyndon 26-8 over the next 8:25 of game time to take an 89-68 lead. The Owls looked as good as they have all season in that run, with all sorts of scorers getting in on the action. UMPI coasted over the last four minutes, not scoring but had built up enough of a lead for it not to matter, ahead by more than 20. In the end, it finished 89-74 with the Owls scoring a season high mark. Their defense also was on display in the second half, taking a game that seemed bound for the 90s and holding Lyndon to 74. UMPI won the second half 44-29.

Top Performers:

Akhe McMichael was quiet most of the day but still finished as UMPI's leading scorer. He had 17 points in just 22 minutes on the floor, also finishing with six boards. He had three steals and two assists as well. 13 of McMichael's points came during that 26-8 run in the second half. Doug McCalla was second with 15 points, also in just 22 minutes played. Joelle Hodge was in double figures for the first time in his career with 10 points and five rebounds, and in his first ever college game, Michael Brigman also got to double figures with 10 points and five rebounds. He knocked down two threes and was 4-9 from the field in his 15 minutes. Tyson Enget led the way in the rebound department with seven, while other guys like Dwaine Williams, AJ Creech and James Yamashita all got to eight points, making it a very balanced scoring attack overall.

Next Up:

The Owls improve to 4-10 on the year and 3-5 in conference play. They now have some momentum going and have a chance to keep it going when they travel to VTSU-Johnson to wrap up their Vermont trip. That game will tip-off at 1 p.m. Sunday, from Johnson, VT.