SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Junior Zach Bromfeld (Woodmere, NY) matched his season-high with 20 points, but it was not enough as the Brewers fell 76-60 to Skidmore on Tuesday evening. With the loss, Vassar drops to 6-9 overall and 2-6 in the Liberty League. The Thoroughbreds move to 5-10 and 4-4 in the conference.
Vassar came out of the gates with a three-pointer from Josh Brownridge (New York, NY) in the opening possession. After a Skidmore triple, Avni Mustafaj (Yonkers, NY) sank a jumper to push the lead to 5-3. The Thoroughbreds tied its next possession, but another Brownridge triple kept a slight 8-5 Vassar lead.
The Brewers maintained the lead when Mustafaj picked up Bromfeld for a fastbreak trey, and then Bromfeld scored again to make it 13-10 at 14:57. Skidmore's Tautvydas Kupstas scored the next eight points, giving the Thoroughbred a five-point lead. The Brewers answered with an 8-2 run, with Mustafaj and Joey Sacco (Ocean City, NJ) connecting for four free throws and Brownridge hitting another three-pointer. At 9:07, Harrison Eichelberge dunked to spur an 8-2 Skidmore run. Kupstas netted a layup at 4:59 to give the Thoroughbreds a ten-point lead.
Mustafaj and Kevin McAuliffe (Bethesda, MD) scored to cut the lead to 34-27, but Skidmore ended the half 6-0 to take a 13-point lead at the break.
A Jack Rothenberg (Yardley, PA) triple cut the lead to 48-38, but the Brewers could not break through the double-digit barrier. Skidmore would lead by as much as 19 in the second half. Bromfeld scored a layup and the and-one free throw at 5:04 to cut the lead to 63-50 but continued to pull away after to secure the victory.
Bromfeld led the team in scoring and also had a team-high nine rebounds. Mustafaj finished with 14 points, three assists, and two rebounds, while Brownridge recorded 13 points behind 4-of-8 three-point shooting. Lance Tebay (Virginia Beach, VA) was active on defense in his return, grabbing six boards and making a game-high four blocks.
The Brewers return home on Fri. Jan. 24 to face RPI at 7:30 p.m. at the AFC.