PHOENIX, Ariz. – The Bluejays' trip to Phoenix continued Saturday night as they took on the Keelhaulers of California Maritime Academy for the first time in program history. The contest marked the second and final game of TC's Phoenix trip, coming on the heels of the Bluejays' loss to host school, Nelson University Arizona. The last action for Cal Maritime came back on December 14^th, as the Keelhaulers fell to Mount Vernon Nazarene University at home.
 
Cal Maritime got on the board first courtesy of a lay-in by DeAndre Minor. Tabor quickly started to get into a rhythm on offense, sparked by a beautiful made three by Creighton Kukula at the 13:10 mark. A layup by Marvin Ruffin pushed the lead to 10 with 8:34 left to play, before efforts from Chiron Pham and Minor helped the Keelhaulers pull back within two. Kreeland Avery closed out the first half scoring the last five points for the Bluejays, giving TC a brief 13-point lead, as Cal Maritime's Illyaas Rafiq hit a three at the buzzer to cut it to 10, 42-32.
 
Tabor enjoyed a 15-point lead towards the middle of the first half, with a Zach Hiebert three, a Kalep Crane layup, and a jumper by Batosse Gado each getting the Bluejays to that mark. The first obvious sign of trouble for TC came via a made three by the Keelhaulers' Nick Stone, cutting the lead down to four and creating the smallest gap between the two teams in the second half up until that point. Crane rushed in the go-ahead layup with 26 seconds remaining to give his squad a slim one-point lead. A Bluejay foul put CSUM's Jamal Frenchwood at the charity stripe to potentially retake the lead. Frenchwood missed the first free throw, resulting in what one can only guess might have been a sigh of relief from the Bluejay faithful, before sinking the second shot. Time ran out before Crane could get a shot off to seal things, sending the contest into overtime with the score knotted at 78.
 
The largest lead by either team in the overtime period went the way of the Bluejays, as they held a four-point advantage with just over three minutes left to play. After several lead changes and seeing their momentum falter, the Bluejays finally pulled ahead for good as Crane sunk the dagger from 14 feet out, sending them back to Hillsboro with a crucial 92-91 result.
 
Kalep Crane had a monster night, pouring in 28 points while dishing out four assists. Marvin Ruffin wasn't too far behind, adding in a season-high 22 points, while James Shoenfelt finished with 16 and Zach Hiebert finished with 10. Batosse Gado hounded the glass, bringing down eight boards to lead the team on that front.
 
Special thanks are in order to freelance photographer and friend of the program, Adam Waybright for his willingness to use his gift of photography, as well as Cal Maritime Sports Information Director, Eric Bankston for all of his hard work helping with the details of the contests. Also we would be remiss if we did not thank Ron Braun and the rest of Bluejay Nation for their support throughout the Phoenix trip.
 
Bluejay Basketball returns to the hardwood after the calendar gets flipped to 2025, as the squad heads up the road to Salina on Saturday, January 4^th to take on Kansas Wesleyan University as Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) play resumes.
 
Be sure to stay up to date with all information regarding Bluejay Athletics by following us on X at @gotaborbluejays, on Instagram and Facebook @taborbluejays, and on our official athletic website, taborbluejays.com.
 
Tabor College is a Christ-centered institution located in Hillsboro, Kansas. The Bluejays are members of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and compete in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC).