(Waltham, Mass.)- The #2-seeded Franklin Pierce University men's basketball team saw their historic season come to an abrupt close against #7-seeded St. Thomas Aquinas College in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Tournament East Regional, by a final score of 76-69 on Saturday afternoon.

The Ravens as a team wrapped up the day shooting 40.7 percent (24-of-59) from all locations on the floor, going 8-33 (24.2%) from behind the three-point line. Junior forward Maxwell Zegarowski (South Hamilton, Mass.) led the team in points scored (17), and was tied in total rebounds (7). Additionally, Zegarowski went 6-6 from the free-throw line.

The Ravens found themselves clawing from behind relatively early on, trailing the Spartans 14-9 through the first ten minutes of play. The comeback bid began off of a transition play from Isaiah Moore, finding Brandon Kolek (Cumberland, R.I.) alone underneath the basket.  Less than a minute later, on the Ravens next possession, Kolek looked to help out this time and found freshman Sean Trumper (Ashford, United Kingdom) in similar fashion, bringing the Ravens to within one point, trailing 14-13. Maxwell Zegarowski then flipped the script some more by knocking down a three-pointer from up top, seconds after collecting the defensive rebound on the other end, putting the Ravens ahead 16-14.

Junior Derrick Obanor (Hyde Park, Mass.) would also contribute a clutch three-pointer, putting the Ravens in a position to establish space on the scoreboard heading towards the second half. He would later strike with another triple, as well as a layup to finish with 8 total points scored. Through the first 20 minutes, the Ravens brought a comfortable 39-26 lead over the Spartans into the break.

However, it became tale of two halves for Franklin Pierce.

St. Thomas Aquinas came out of the break with a surge of energy, both offensively and defensively. Through the mid-way portion of the 2^nd half, the Spartans outscored the Ravens 31-16, going 4-6 from the arc. Despite the chances and shot attempts being present, offensive struggles were as well for Franklin Pierce, going 10-30 from the floor (33.3%) and 4-18 from the three-line (22.2%) in the half. The Ravens found a rhythm late, climbing back into the race and keeping the score tight in the final five minutes. Over the last minute, trailing 72-69, the Spartans claimed the victory after making four straight free-throws.

Through the full 40 minutes, two other players hit the double-digit mark in points, with Mohamed Traore racking up 14, along with 7 rebounds, and Isaiah Moore contributing 11 points and 6 rebounds.  

Sean Trumper and Derrick Obanor each tallied 8 points, and sophomore forward Sean Bresnan (Yonkers, N.Y.) scored 7 points, to go with 2 assists and 4 total rebounds.

With the win, St. Thomas Aquinas College advances to face the University of New Haven tomorrow evening at 5 P.M. E.T.