Kong and Fifer Led Goucher’s Effort Versus Cardinals

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Goucher College Gophers (4-14 overall; 1-10 conference) hit the road to face the Cardinals of Catholic University of America (14-4 overall; 10-1 conference) in a Landmark Conference matchup. The Gophers struggled to find their rhythm early, as Catholic came out firing and built a significant lead in the first half. Despite strong efforts, Goucher could not match the Cardinals' offense, propelling them to the 95-51 victory.

The Cardinals opened the game with a 3-pointer in the first 30 seconds. The Gophers responded quickly as Avree Harris finished a driving layup. Both teams traded baskets early, including a 3-pointer from Liech Kong, but the Cardinals took an early lead, 7–5. Catholic continued to extend its advantage before Jadyss Fifer halted the momentum with a three-pointer from beyond the arc. Egeonu went to the line and made a free throw to add to the Gophers' total. Both teams battled defensively until Catholic converted a layup. Goucher called a timeout, which helped the team regain momentum as Fifer made a layup coming out of the break. The Cardinals continued to build their lead, taking a 31–11 advantage with 8:29 remaining in the half. A 13-point run by Catholic was halted by a 3-pointer from Kong. Catholic converted its free throws at the line before Kong made another basket for the Gophers. In the final 46 seconds, Fifer knocked down two 3-pointers to close the scoring. Catholic carried a dominant 53–22 lead into halftime.

In the second half, Catholic remained consistent, opening with a 3-pointer. The Cardinals added a layup before Kong responded with one of his own. The Gophers gained momentum as Fifer sank another three. After a two-minute scoring stalemate, Fifer finished a turnaround jumpshot. Lucas Land assisted Fifer on another shot from beyond the arc and then set up Kong for a 3-point jumpshot. Fifer added three more points before Catholic extended its lead to 73–38 with 9:32 remaining. Brian Griffin grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a turnaround jumpshot. Langston Davis and Jack Murdaugh added points to the board, before the Gophers called a timeout. Catholic continued to score at the line, but Timi Akisanya answered with a layup for Goucher with 3:49 remaining. JP Prior and Kofi Mensah also contributed with made free throws late in the competition. Catholic maintained its lead for the remainder of the game, securing a 95–51 victory over Goucher.

Fifer led the Gophers with 22 points in the contest, followed closely by Kong with 15. Three Gophers led with five rebounds each, while Land dished out three assists for the team.

Catholic held the statistical advantage, finishing 49.2% from the field, while Gocher converted 34.7%. From beyond the arc, Cathlic capitalized on 12-30, compared to the Gophers 8-23. Finally, from the free throw line, Catholic shot 87.5%, as Goucher finished 56.3%. The Cardinals grabbed 42 rebounds, while Goucher collected 29.

The Gophers travel to face Elizabetown on Saturday, Jan. 31 at 2pm, before returning home to host Lycoming on Wednesday, Feb. 4 at 7pm.