By Steven M. Glassman

Director of Sports Information

December 15, 2023

JENKINTOWN, PA—United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) Division I Manor College (7-2 overall, 2-0 Eastern States Athletic Conference) freshman guard Manny Roach (Medford, NJ/Life Center Academy) led the fourth-ranked Blue Jays with 24 points as they defeated the USCAA Division II Christendom College Crusaders (3-4, 1-2), 102-83, in its ESAC home opener.

Christendom led by as much as 20-9 with 14:28 remaining on sophomore guard Joey Curran's three-point basket.  Manor went on their own 20-9 run between 14:17 and 8:42 (a 5:35 stretch) and tied the game at 29 on freshman forward Deacon Linder's (Philadelphia, PA/Hardy Williams Academy [Mastery]) free throws. The Crusaders' ten of its first 11 baskets were on three-pointers.  The Blue Jays took its first lead of the game, 37-36, on junior guard Shyere Mayhue's (Philadelphia, PA/Power for People Charter) layup with 5:08 remaining.  The Crusaders took the lead for the remainder of the half with 4:48 left on junior forward Michael Messing's jump shot.  Christendom led at halftime, 46-43. Senior guard John Paul Vander Woude led both teams with 17 points and sophomore guard Bobby Vander Woude added 10 for the Crusaders.  Senior guard Eddie Fortescue Jr (Blue Bell, PA/Wissahickon) and junior forward Jarid Verti (Willingboro, NJ/Rahway) paced Manor with 11 points each.

Fortescue Jr's three-point basket with 19:41 left tied the game at 46. Crusaders retook the lead on senior forward Peter Ethridge's layup with 18:09 remaining.  Christendom would lead by 57-49 with 16:09 left on freshman center Daniel Schultz' jump shot. Roach's jump shot with 12:31 remaining tied the game at 61, but Christendom took the lead again with 12:17 left on freshman guard Charlie Evich's free throw. The Crusaders then led by as much as 74-68 with 9:36 remaining on John Paul Vander Woude's free throw.  Manor took its first second-half lead, 77-74 with 8:18 left, on junior guard Namir Simmons' (Philadelphia, PA/Academy Park) layup and free throw.  They previously led 37-36 with 5:08 remaining in the first half.  After Christendom freshman guard John Fowler's free throws tied the game at 79 with 7:39 left, Manor went on a 23-2 run between 7:33 and 1:39 remaining (5:54). This opened up its largest lead at the end of this run, 102-81, on Simmons' free throws.  The Crusaders had two field goals over the final 8:01. The Blue Jays defense held them without a field goal for 6:30 (between 8:01 and 1:31 remaining in the second half). Manor outscored Christendom in the second half, 59-37. The Blue Jays' 59 second-half points are the most they scored this season, surpassing the 53 they scored versus Patrick Henry College on November 11.  This the third time this season overall (second at home) that they have scored 50 or more second-half points.  Simmons led both teams with 17 points and Roach contributed 15 for Manor. Bobby Vander Woude and Ethridge paced the Crusaders with 10 points each.

This was the final game for the Blue Jays before Manor's Holiday Break.

Statistical Leaders: In addition to Simmons, Fortescue Jr and Vertil added 15 points apiece. Fortescue Jr also led the Blue Jays with seven rebounds. Roach scored 14 points and paced Manor with three steals.  Simmons and sophomore forward Cheikh Diagne (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast) led the Blue Jays with four assists each. Linder paced both benches with 10 points and six rebounds.

Bobby Vander Woude led Christendom with 23 points and four assists.  Ethridge and John Paul Vander Woude scored 19 points each for the Crusaders. Ethridge (13) and Patrick (10) each contributed double-digit rebounds for Christendom.

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Scoring Leaders (including ties): Roach (4), Simmons (4), and Diagne (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Rebounding Leaders (including ties): Vertil (4), Diagne (2), Fortescue Jr (2), freshman center Cristeph Lamothe (Philadelphia, PA/Camelot Excel Academy) (1), and Roach (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Assists Leaders (including ties): Simmons (8), Roach (4), Diagne (1), and Fortescue Jr (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Single-Game Steals Leaders (including ties): Roach (4), Simmons (3), Diagne (1), and Fortescue Jr (1).

Manor 2023-2024 Double-Figure Scoring Leaders: Roach (8), Simmons (8), Fortescue Jr (7), Vertil (7), Diagne (6), Linder (2), and freshman guard Steven Latimer (Hainesport, NJ/Rancocas Valley) (1).

Manor 2023-2024 20-Point Games Leaders: Simmons (4), Roach (3), and Fortescue Jr (2).

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): This is the first game in this series between the two schools. 

Manor Versus USCAA Division II (Since 2021-2022): Since joining the USCAA, Manor is 10-12 overall (6-3 at home) versus USCAA Division II schools.

Manor Trailing at Halftime (Since 2021-2022): The Blue Jays are 1-1 overall (1-0 at home) when they are trailing at halftime this season. The last time they won after trailing at halftime overall and at home was on December 13, 2022 when they were trailing the Central Pennsylvania College Knights, 49-40, and won 93-85.  Manor has won five times overall (3-2 at home) when they were trailing at halftime since joining the USCAA.

Manor as a Nationally-Ranked Team (Since 2021-2022): Manor is 4-0 overall (2-0 at home) as a Nationally-Ranked team this season.  They are 9-2 overall (4-1 at home) since the 2021-2022 season.

Home Sweet Home (Since 2021-2022): The Blue Jays are 4-0 at home this season.  They are 13-4 at home overall (4-2 in the ESAC) since the 2021-2022 season.  The last time they started at 4-0 before going on its Winter Break was during the 2021-2022 season when they finished 5-1 at home.

Manor in 100-point Games (Since 2021-2022): This is the second time this season and fifth time overall that Manor has scored 100 or more points since they joined the USCAA for the 2021-2022 season.  They are 3-2 overall (3-1 at home) in these games.

Double-Digit Wins (Since 2021-2022): The Blue Jays have won by double digits Five times overall (four at home) this season.  They have won by double digits 14 times overall (eight at home) since the 2021-2022 season. 

Manor at the Winter Break: Manor is 7-2 overall at its Winter Break.  The last time they won seven games before going on its Winter Break was during the 2021-2022 season (its first in the USCAA) when they started the season 7-4 overall and finished 10-7.

Next Game: The Blue Jays host the USCAA Division II Bucks County County Community College on Thursday, January 18, 2024 at 7:30 p.m. in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania.  This is the first match-up between the two schools.  Manor leads the season series, 17-10 overall (9-4 at home) since 1994-1995 (2001-2002 season unavailable).  The Blue Jays have lost five straight contests overall and seven of its last eight versus the Centurions.  Bucks County swept the 2022-2023 season series, 103-87 (at Bucks County) on November 19, 2022 and 100-88 (at Manor) on February 16, 2023.  Manor last defeated Bucks County, 89-80, on February 8, 2020 when both schools were NJCAA Region XIX Division II.

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