By Steven M. Glassman

Director of Sports Information

December 1, 2023

SEWELL, NJ—United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I Manor College (4-2 overall, 1-0 Eastern States Athletic Conference) freshman guard Manny Roach (Medford, NJ/Life Center Academy) led the sixth-ranked Blue Jays with 14 points and six steals as they defeated the USCAA Division II Williamson College of the Trades Mechanics (3-6, 1-1), 78-45, in the Roadrunner Classic Semifinal, hosted by NJCAA Region XIX Division III Rowan College South Jersey-Gloucester.

Williamson led three times (5-0, 7-5, and 15-14) early in the first half.  They last led, 17-16, with 11:31 left on junior guard Robert Whiley's jump shot. Manor answered, scoring 13 straight points over the next 5:38 and took its first double-digit lead, 29-17 on Roach's three-point basket with an assist by senior guard Eddie Fortescue Jr (Blue Bell, PA/Wissahickon). The Blue Jays took its first of its largest first-half leads when they led 39-21 with 3:45 remaining on a junior guard Namir Simmons (Philadelphia, PA/Academy Park) three-point basket with an assist by Roach. Simmons' three-point basket finished off a 23-4 run between 11:31 and 3:45 (7:46).  They led by 18 twice more (41-23 and 43-25) in the first half.  Manor led 43-27 at halftime. The 27 points at halftime is the second-fewest allowed by the Blue Jays this season.  Patrick Henry College scored 25 in the first half on November 11.  Roach led both teams with 10 points.

Manor increased its lead to 20 (47-27) on Simmons' layup with 17:41 remaining.  Williamson would get as close as 19 (50-31) on freshman guard Robert Johnson's layup with 12:27 left.  The Blue Jays went up by 20 again (51-31) with 12:09 remaining on a Roach free throw and would not go below it for the rest of the game. This finished off a 16-4 run over a 5:34 stretch. Williamson scored its final field goal on a freshman forward Samuel Nash jump shot with 6:14 left.  Manor led by over 30 for the first time (73-42) on a freshman guard Steven Latimer (Hainesport, NJ/Rancocas Valley) layup with an assist by junior guard Shyere Mayhue (Philadelphia, PA/People for People Charter) with 4:49 remaining. The Blue Jays took its largest lead, 78-42, with 3:24 left on freshman guard Fred Bailey's (Philadelphia, PA/Mount Pleasant) three-point basket with an assist by Mayhue.  Manor outscored Williamson in the second half, 34-18. The 18 second-half points and seven field goals allowed are the fewest allowed by the Blue Jays this season.  The last time Manor allowed fewer than 20 points in the second half was 19 at Delaware Technical Community College on January 14, 2020 when they were in NJCAA Region XIX Division II. The last time they allowed fewer than 20 points in any half was 17 versus Williamson in the first half on January 26, 2023. 

Manor will be competing in its first In-Season Tournament Championship since the 2021 Roadrunner Classic versus Montgomery County College.  They will be facing the NJCAA Region XIX Division III Ocean County College Vikings (2-2).  Ocean County won the other semifinal, 87-75, versus RCSJ-Gloucester (2-5).

Statistical Leaders: In addition to Roach, Fortescue Jr scored 12 points and led Manor with eight rebounds. Simmons and junior forward Jarid Vertil (Willingboro, NJ/Rahway) contributed 11 points each.  Roach and Simmons paced the Blue Jays with five assists each.

Johnson and freshman forward Liam Rardin led Williamson with 10 points each.

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Scoring Leaders (including ties): Roach (3), Simmons (2), and sophomore forward Cheikh Diagne (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Rebounding Leaders (including ties): Diagne (2), Vertil (2), freshman center Cristeph Lamothe (Philadelphia, PA/Camelot Excel Academy) (1), Fortescue Jr (1), and Roach (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Assists Leaders (including ties): Simmons (5) and Roach (2).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Steals Leaders (including ties): Roach (3), Simmons (2), and Diagne (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Double-Figure Scoring Leaders: Daigne (5), Roach (5), Simmons (5), Fortescue Jr (4), Vertil (4), Latimer (1), and freshman forward Deacon Linder (Philadelphia, PA/Hardy Williams Academy [Mastery]) (1).

Manor 2023-2024 20-Point Games Leaders: Roach (2), Simmons (2), and Fortescue Jr (1).

Manor 2023-2024 30-Point Games Leaders: None.

Manor 2023-2024 Double-Figure Rebounding Leaders: Diagne (1) and Vertil (1).

Manor 2023-2024 "Double-Double" (Points and Rebounds) Leaders: Diagne (1) and Vertil (1).

Season Series (Since 1994-1995): Manor leads the season series, 9-1 (2-1 at neutral sites).

Manor Versus USCAA Division II (Since 2021-2022): Since joining the USCAA, Manor is 9-12 overall (2-5 at neutral sites) versus USCAA Division II schools.

Manor in In-Season Tournaments (Since 2021-2022): The Blue Jays are 4-7 overall in In-Season Tournaments (4-6 at neutral sites) since joining the USCAA.

Manor as a Nationally-Ranked Team (Since 2021-2022): Manor is 1-0 overall (1-0 at neutral sites) as a Nationally-Ranked team this season.  They are 6-2 overall (2-1 at neutral sites) since the 2021-2022 season.

Manor Leading at Halftime: The Blue Jays are 4-1 overall (1-1 at neutral sites) when they are leading at halftime this season.  Manor is 16-3 overall (4-1 at neutral sites) when leading at halftime since joining the USCAA.

Next Game: Manor plays Ocean County on Saturday, December 2 at 4:00 p.m. in the Roadrunner Classic Championship.  The Blue Jays are 0-1 (0-1 at neutral sites) versus the Vikings.  Manor lost its only match-up versus Ocean County, 94-76, in the Roadrunner Classic Consolation Game on December 3, 2022.

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