FREDERICKSBURG, Va.- Five WildCats reached double figures in a shootout but host Mary Washington was able to defeat Randolph in the end 96-83 on Saturday evening in the Hyatt Place Tipoff Tournament. The Eagles advance to tomorrow afternoon's championship game against Denison.

While the 'Cats were able to outshoot the Eagles percentage-wise, Randolph's 17 turnovers led to 20 UMW points. The WildCats finished the night with a 56.6% from the floor and 52.6% from beyond the three-point arc.

Randolph fell behind early in the first half as an 11-8 score became a 20-8 Mary Washington lead. It was 24-15 UMW with 12:06 remaining in the first half before the 'Cats mounted a comeback. A 12-0 run, ending with Brian Smith's (Dumfries, Va./C.D. Hylton) three-point shot with 8:28 showing on the game clock, gave Randolph a 27-26 advantage. The Eagles tied it at 7:36 but Randolph answered with a layup from Sammy Hooper (Richmond, Va./Midlothian) to go up 29-27. Despite the Eagles staying ahead, the WildCats kept pace and trailed only 44-40 at halftime.

The WildCats came into the second half on fire as they raced out to a 10-0 run to go ahead 50-44. Mary Washington cut to within one point of tying but Randolph was able to stay out in front.

Following a pair of free throws by Ryan Fields (Edgewood, Md./Loyola Blakefield) with 9:43 remaining in the game, Randolph held a 73-71 lead. That advantage would stay until the Eagles tied it up at 73-all after a layup from Jacob Williams. After Khorie Williams sank a pair of free throw shots, Fields nailed a three-point basket to put Randolph back on top 76-75 at 7:16. It would be the WildCats' last lead as UMW would go on a 21-7 run the rest of the way to pull away. It was still a one-possession game, 84-81, with 3:08 to play but the Eagles would go on to outscore the WildCats 12-2, including going 6-for-7 from the foul line.

"Credit goes to Mary Washington as they made some gritty and timely plays over the last stretch," said head coach Pete Hamilton. "I think we showed again tonight the potential this group has to be special. I'm optimistic about the way we fought. Unfortunately, we aren't maintaining a winning focus for 40 minutes. We've put ourselves in two great positions this week and similar themes have prevented us from the result we want. I think when we put together a focused 40 minutes we'll take another step as a team."

Fields reached the 20-point mark for the second straight game. He scored 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting. Colton Lee (Raleigh, N.C./North Raleigh Christian Academy) added 15 points as he shot 5-of-6 from the field with all coming via three-point attempts. Justin Dula (Taylorsville, N.C./Alexander Central) added 12 points and three rebounds. Drew Hayden (Vinton, Va./William Byrd) had 11 points and Hooper finished with 10 points off of the bench. Smith tallied seven points, five rebounds, and four assists.

The WildCats will play #23 Cabrini in the consolation game tomorrow afternoon. Game time is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.