Bantams Beat Bates for Senior Day Victory

Erin Karczewski ’20

Sports Editor

The Trinity College men’s basketball team celebrated their senior day in a solid victory over the Bates College Bobcats this past Saturday. With five Bantams finishing in double-digit scoring, the Bobcats fell 114-78 after a 35 to 13 run for the Bantams in the later part of the second half. Senior co-captain Nick Seretta led the scoring for the Bantams with 22 points, five rebounds, and two assists.  

The Bobcats got off to an early lead, leaving the Bantams trailing 16-9 in the first five minutes of the first half. With buckets from freshman Stephen Lora and senior co-captain Kyle Padmore along with a three pointer from junior Colin Donovan, the Bantams tied up the game with 10:10 remaining in the first half. 

Seretta gave Trinity its first lead of the game by sinking a fade-away jump shot with just 7:40 to go in the half. After much back and forth, senior Christian Porydzy hit two three-pointers to give the Bantams an 11-point lead with just one minute in the first half. A quick basket for the Bobcats left them trailing 51-43 at the halftime mark.  

At the start of the second half, Trinity kept their lead at seven with buckets in the paint from sophomore Donald Jorden and senior Jadakis Brooks. Although the Bobcats pushed back with a few jump shots of their own, three pointers from Porydzy and senior Joe Bell improved the Bantams lead to ten points with just 11:30 to go in the game. Consistent sharp shooting from Bell, Porydzy, Donovan, and Seretta allowed Trinity to stretch their lead to as far as 33 points with just under three minutes remaining. The trailing Bobcats fought back but were not able to overcome the difference, finishing in a 114-78 final. The difference for the two teams was the accuracy from the floor. The Bantams shot 37 of 68 (54.4%) from the floor and 13 of 24 from behind the three-point line while the Bobcats were just 40.3% from the floor. The accuracy put Seretta, Donovan, Books, Padmore, and Porydzy all in double-digits for the Bantams. Trinity also dominated on the boards for a total of 41 rebounds to only 29 for Bates.  

The win improved Trinity’s record to 15-7 (5-3 in the NESCAC) and dropped the Bobcats to 11-10 (3-5 in the NESCAC). Hopeful for the rest of the season, Trinity co-captain and lead scorer Nick Seretta says it was a “great team win Saturday against a good Bates team and a very special day for us six seniors. We are looking forward to hopefully securing a home playoff game with two big wins at Amherst and Hamilton this weekend.” The Bantams will travel to Massachusetts this Friday, Feb. 14, to face the Amherst College Mammoths.