Jackets Roll Earlham to Clinch HCAC Tournament Bid

DEFIANCE, Ohio – Defiance College never trailed against Earlham on Wednesday night, turning in a dominant defensive showing in a 64-39 triumph. The victory pushes the Jackets' regular season winning streak during the month of February to 10-straight games.

The 39 points scored by Earlham also marked the lowest point total allowed by Defiance during the Kyle Brumett era, and matches the lowest offensive output against DC since the Jackets also limited Rose-Hulman to 39 points in a 60-39 victory inside the Hive back on January 3, 2007.

Wednesday night's game was rarely in doubt, as Defiance blew open an early 9-6 lead with a 17-1 stretch that pushed the Purple and Gold to a 26-7 lead with 6:10 remaining in the opening stanza.

The lead would settle at 34-15 by the break, before swelling to as many as 30, at 59-29 with 6:10 left in the contest. Defiance was never threatened in the second half, maintaining a cushion of at least 25 points over the final eight minutes of action and cruising to the 64-39 victory.

Defiance put all 17 players into the game, with 11 cracking the scoring column. Bernard Edwards led the way with 18 points, while Logan Wolfrum chipped in with 16 points, three assists and three steals.

The Jackets harassed the Quaker (2-20, 1-14 HCAC) attack all night long, forcing EC into 19 turnovers and a 34.0-percent clip from the field. DC turned those 19 miscues into a 17-4 edge in points off of turnovers and also posted a 14-0 advantage in fast break points.

Defiance (14-8, 10-5) will host No. 19 Rose-Hulman (20-2, 14-1 HCAC) on Saturday at 3:00 pm in the final home contest of the regular season for the Jackets. Logan Wolfrum and Marcus Dunlap will each be honored prior to the start of the 3:00 pm contest as the two seniors on DC's 2012-2013 squad.