MOUNT VERNON, Iowa – The last time Grinnell College's men's basketball team played Cornell College, the Pioneers had little trouble while winning by 26 points.
This time around, the Pioneers had to call on their resolve again and again, and every time the visitors answered the bell as they came away with a 99-96 victory in Midwest Conference play Tuesday.
The Pioneers, who improved to 5-4 in the league and 9-7 in all games, continued their dominance in the series as they beat the Rams for the ninth time in the last 10 meetings and 15th time in the last 17.
Hannes Kogelnik '21 went wild for Grinnell with 36 points, hitting 10-of-19 3-pointers in the process. He now ranks 12th in Pioneer history with 267 career treys.
Jackson Qualley '22 added 21 points, while
Brady Vest '21 and
Aiden Gilbert '23 had 15 each. Vest's tally was a career high.
Will Bebee '22 and Gilbert had four and three steals, respectively, both career highs.
Brad Geiman '21 blocked three shots, Qualley added seven assists, Gilbert dished out a career-best six assists and Geiman grabbed eight rebounds.
Will Dubow '21 had a career-high seven boards, and Breshears also had seven rebounds.
The Rams, who are 2-6 in the league and 7-8 overall, got out to a 4-0 lead before the Pioneers raced ahead 22-13. Cornell then came back, taking a one-point lead before Grinnell again answered. Leading by five points late in the first half, Grinnell finished with a flurry as Qualley and Kogelnik drained consecutive treys to help make it 48-38 at halftime.
Grinnell built its lead to 10 points twice in the second half, but the hosts charged back and four times sliced the gap to one point. The last of those was at 88-87 with 2:25 left, but Grinnell came up big as Kogelnik hit a 3-pointer. After a missed trey by the Rams, Gilbert was fouled and converted a traditional three-point play for a 94-87 lead.
The Rams came back with a five-point run to make it a two-point game, only to see Kogelnik drain another trey. Grinnell forced Cornell into three missed shots down the stretch and Kogelnik made two free throws with 7 seconds left to preserve the win.
Grinnell returns to Darby Gymnasium Saturday to host Knox College at 1 p.m.
