ATLANTA – After a close game full of high energy, the Oglethorpe Stormy Petrels fell 74-72 to the Hendrix Warriors. 

Ten Petrels made their way into the scoring column, with three of them reaching double digits. Jonathan Awoleye led with a career high of 20, followed by Trey Harris with 12, Jordan James with 11, Mason Kemp with nine and Jackson Kemp with eight points.  

Ryan Jenei and Malachi Dooley each recorded three assists, while Awoleye recorded a career high of nine rebounds, one shy of his first double-double. 

"That one's a tough one to swallow," said Head Coach Philip Ponder. "We did a lot of good things today. We won the rebounding battle. We won the turnover battle. We outshot them from the field. 99% of the time, that's a recipe for a win. I'm not sure what happened to us from the free throw line this weekend. We were leading the league in free throw shooting coming into Friday, but we really struggled this weekend and it cost us in both games."

Oglethorpe was the first to score, thanks to a free throw from James. The Petrels and the Warriors battled for dominance for most of the half, with the score tying six times in the period. Hendrix was unable to hold a definite lead until the last five minutes of the period, when the Warriors sunk a 3-pointer to bring the score up to 32-31. From there, Hendrix pushed forward as Oglethorpe struggled to keep up. Despite baskets from Awoleye and James in the last minute, Oglethorpe headed into halftime trailing 43-40.  

The second period began with yet another free throw from James, but this time two 3-pointers from James gave the Warriors quite a scare. The Petrels remained on Hendrix's heels for the rest of the period, and with only eight minutes left on the clock, a layup by Harris kickstarted what would become a 14-5 run against the Warriors.

During this run, Harris made a smooth steal that led to a beautiful layup and Jenei assisted Awoleye with a stellar dunk. The run ended as Mason Kemp tied things up at 70-70 with just under two and a half minutes remaining. However, Hendrix quickly regained their lead and reached 73-70 around the one-minute mark.

Mason Kemp and Dylan Bennifield recorded successful free-throws in the final 40 seconds, with Bennifield bringing Oglethorpe just two points away from victory at 73-72.  However, Hendrix would sink a free throw of their own, and the Stormy Petrels ultimately fell 74-72 to the Warriors.  

Game Notes 

• Oglethorpe's record is now 8-12 (3-6 SAA). 
• The team uncharacteristically struggled from the free throw line with a 53.1% free throw percentage. 
• Oglethorpe's record against Hendrix is now 27-11 since 2002. 
• The team recorded 13 steals.  
• Oglethorpe's last game against Hendrix (Jan. 22, 2023) was also a close one, resulting in a 73-70 win that was claimed in the final seconds.  

Up Next 

The Stormy Petrels will be home once again on Friday, Feb. 3, to celebrate senior night and take on Centre at 8 p.m. Oglethorpe will also be home on Sunday, Feb. 5, to host Millsaps at 3 p.m.