The No. 4-seeded Falcons (22-10) broke open a close game with a 19-8 run to take a double-digit lead into the final four minutes but had to hold off a furious rush from the No. 5-seeded Lakers (20-9) to pull out the Atlantic Region
quarterfinal win.
   Jamel Morris capped Fairmont’s decisive surge with a pair of free throws for a 64-53 Falcon advantage with 4:29 remaining but Mercyhurst’s Jean Onana sandwiched a pair of 3-pointers around a James Ewing jumper to trim the lead to 64-61 with 2:39 remaining.
   That was as close as the Lakers – making their first NCAA Tournament appearance – would get. Mercyhurst got the ball trailing 66-63 with less than 30 seconds remaining but after running the clock down into single digits, Onana’s contested 3-pointer failed to draw iron. Fairmont’s Thomas Wimbush closed out the scoring with a pair of free throws.
   First-team All-Region pick Nick Harney led the Falcons with 26 points and 10 rebounds with Morris adding 13 points. Onana and Damon Jones had 11 points each for Mercyhurst, which also got 10 points from Callon Dailey.
