Ignition.

Basketball coaches like their teams to blast off with the opening tip and soar over their opponents before cruising to victory. But it doesn't always happen that way – and it didn't for the #5 Chargers in their first road contest, a trip to Mount Saint Mary to face the #14 Rockets.

Heritage Hall held a close 11-10 lead after a sloppy first quarter that allowed the Mount to stay close. Both teams started scoring the ball better, but the Chargers had only managed to stretch the lead to a few by halftime, docking at 29-26.

The Chargers boosted their lead with a 6-0 run to open the second half, but the Rockets fired back to tie it up before the 3rd quarter buzzer sounded. Holding a 50-46 lead with about 5 minutes to play, Heritage Hall turned on the afterburners and pulled away from the Rockets. In an intense few minutes, the Hall played pressure defense that led to four steals that were all converted to buckets on the break. At the 1:40 mark, Sayvon Milton picked up his fifth foul, but on his way to the bench looked up at the scoreboard to see his squad in front 57-46. The Chargers knocked down free throws and held the ball to send the Rockets to back to ground zero with a 61-50 loss.

Jon Matthews led all scorers with 17 points and was also active on the glass, snagging 11 rebounds. Les Thomas came on strong in the 4th quarter to finish with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Despite fouling out in the 4th, Milton notched 12 points and 8 rebounds for the Chargers. William McDonald and Sam Kakish did the little things to help the Hall win. McDonald finished with 5 assists, 4 rebounds, and 3 steals while Kakish tallied 9 points to go with 4 steals and 2 rebounds.

The Chargers and Rockets will meet again on January 31st at the McClendon Athletic Center.