Trinity Opens Tournament With Loss to Linfield Sunday

Spokane, Wash. - Trinity's men's basketball team couldn't hold on to a halftime lead as Linfield College won a 69-57 game at Whitworth Fieldhouse on Sunday afternoon. 

Trinity lost the season opener at home to Schreiner on Monday, and now stands at 0-2 on the year.  Linfield played its season-opener today against the Tigers.
 
Four Tigers scored in double figures, led by first-year forward Robert Kitzinger's of Carmel, Ind. (Carmel), who produced 15 points. Senior forward Sam Dworkin of Portland, Ore. (Lincoln), added 12 points, shooting 5-10 from the field. Luke Caldarera, a senior forward from Houston (Katy Taylor), scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds. Caldarera also had three steals. Junior forward Gil Melchior of Luxembourg produced 11 points, on 4-4 shooting.
 
First-year forward Zach Lambert of Frisco, Texas (Centennial), led the Tigers with six rebounds and four steals, while scoring two points. Junior guard Ryan Beall of Santa Barbara, Calif. (Dos Pueblos), dished out a game-best six assists (one point).
 
Trinity took an early 14-2 lead, sparked by Kitzinger's eight points, But Linfield outscored the Tigers 24-13 and closed to 26-27, at 3:56 to play in the first half. After the Wildcats briefly took a one-point lead (28-27), a three-pointer by Dworkin and a jumper by Caldarera gave the Tigers the 32-28 advantage at the half.
 
The Tigers went up by seven, 44-37, on a three-point bucket by Melchior at 14:14 in the second half. The Wildcats whittled it down and tied the score at 50-50, with 7:32 on the clock, and took a 52-50 lead at 6:41 on a jump shot. In the final four minutes, Trinity could get no closer than 10 points. The Wildcats outscored the Tigers 41-25 in the second half.
 
Linfield's K.C. Wiser led the game with 23 points, hitting 10-13 shots, and pulling in nine rebounds.
 
The Wildcats shot 57.5 percent from the field, and limited the Tigers to 33.9 percent. Linfield led 33-30 in rebounding, but Trinity held a 12-5 advantage in offensive boards.
 
Trinity continues its Washington trip Monday by taking on host Whitworth at 5:30 p.m. Pacific (7:30 p.m. Central).