CHESTERTOWN — Washington turned away a scrappy Springfield squad on Saturday, 75-71, taking the lead for good at 62-61 on sophomore Ty Woodland’s jumper with about two and a half minutes to play.
Jon Nalty and Max Portnoy collectively went 6-of-6 from the stripe over the final 11 seconds to salt away the win.
Washington improved to 5-0 on the season heading into tonight’s non-conference game at Penn State Berks.
The 6-foot-5 Woodland put up a double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, along with three blocks.
Also scoring in double figures for the Shoremen were Nolan Waldon, Nalty and Portnoy, with 14, 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Springfield’s Josh Hartley (nine rebounds) led all players with 17 points in 23 minutes off the bench.
Xoren Livingston and Josiah Evely each contributed 10 points for the 2-3 Pride.
It was a back-and-forth game with 11 ties and nine lead changes.
Washington took its first lead at 10-9 on back-to-back buckets by Woodland to finish off a 6-0 run; would lead by as many as seven points at 32-25 on a Davis Bland three with just under two minutes remaining in the half; and carried a slim 32-29 lead into the break.
Woodland scored nine of his team-leading 15 points before intermission.
Bland and Jaedon Harris added five apiece.
Springfield’s Hunter Matteson (eight points) completed a traditional three-point play on the first shot of the second half to deadlock at 32, and the two teams went to and fro after that.
The largest advantage either side had in the second half was six points, Washington pulling ahead, 60-54, on a Portnoy layup with 5 minutes, 8 seconds remaining.
Springfield scored the next seven points to take its last lead of the afternoon, 61-60, on a pair of Livingston free throws with 2:58 to play.
Woodland scored on the ensuing possession 19 seconds later, restoring Washington’s lead for good.
Playing a futile game of catch-up, Springfield was forced to foul down the stretch in an attempt to regain possession.
