Box Score MEADVILLE, Pa. - Led by its six-man senior class, Allegheny wrapped up the 2013-14 campaign with a 76-72 victory over Denison on Senior Day at the Wise Center.

The Gators (6-19, 3-15 NCAC), who tied a Wise Center record with 15 three-point field goals, led for the duration, and received 62 of their 72 points by an inspired senior class. 

Ryan Stanko led the way for the Gator veterans, scoring 26 points to equal his highest output of the season, and connected on six three-pointers, one shy of tying the program's single-game record.  Fellow seniors Clark Tritto and John O'Donnell each added nine points, while Bobby Theiss and Marco Corona scored eight apiece.  D'Andre Corbin dished out a game-high nine assists, while Tritto led both sides with 10 rebounds and five blocked shots.

In front of a raucous Wise Center crowd, the Gators, led by Stanko, owned play in the early stages, jumping out to an 18-8 lead just over five minutes into play.  Stanko, the latest inductee into the team's 1,000-point club, scored 11 points over the span, including a trio of three-pointers.

Denison answered right back, using a quick 11-2 run to close the gap to 20-19 with 10:25 left in the half, and the game would then remain tight through the intermission, with both teams showing a propensity for the long ball. 

In a five-minute span beginning at the seven-minute mark, the Gators and Big Red combined for nine three-pointers.  After Allegheny's Evan Zabriski hit a pair, Denison's Robby Weingart connected from the left wing to tie the game at 31 with 3:13 left.  O'Donnell would then answer with threes on consecutive possessions to put the Gators in front 41-35 with just under two minutes remaining in the half.  The Big Red would close out the opening stanza by scoring the final five points, cutting the Gator advantage to 41-40 at the half.

The first half was an offensive exhibition for each squad, as the Gators shot 57 percent (16-for-28) and the Big Red 55 percent (16-for-29).  Allegheny connected on nine of 17 attempts from behind the arc over the first 20 minutes, with four coming from Stanko and three from Zabriski.

Spurred by two more three-pointers, Denison owned play in the early stages of the second half, opening the frame on an 8-2 run to take its largest lead of the day, 48-43, with 17:50 remaining. 

The Gators answered by continuing their torrid pace from long range, as the all-senior lineup countered with a 16-2 run to gain a 59-50 cushion with 11:47 to go.  Over the six-minute span, Stanko, O'Donnell, and Tritto combined for five three-pointers, while Corona connected on a pair of lay ups. 

Again, Denison refused to go away, as the Big Red responded with a 10-0 run, capped off with a long Darius White three-pointer, to gain a 60-59 advantage at the 8:15 mark. 

The tide then swung back the way of the Gators, who scored six straight points in 90 seconds to regain a lead they would not relinquish.  The run was made possible by Tritto, who grabbed four rebounds over the span, including a pair on the offensive end.  After Josh Valentic's three-pointer put the Gators in front 65-60 with 6:28 left, Tritto was rewarded by rattling home his second trey of the game to give Allegheny a 68-62 cushion at the 5:30 mark.

The lead would eventually swell to 72-64 on a bucket from Corona, before the Big Red put together one last gasp, scoring eight of the next 10 points to close the gap to 74-72 and set up a frantic final 25 seconds.

On the ensuing possession, the Big Red were forced to foul, and Valentic missed the front end of the one-and-one.  However, Tritto came up big again, snaring the offensive rebound, drawing the foul, and sinking the front end of the bonus to make the score 75-72.  His second attempt missed, but this time it was Corona who came up with the offensive board.   He missed a pair, but the Gators forced a scoreless Denison possession, and Tritto grabbed his 10th rebound of the game with 14 seconds left. 

Again, the Gators were unable to connect on two free throws, but on the Denison rebound, they committed the foul on the floor with three seconds left, preventing the Big Red from an opportunity to tie.  The Big Red missed the front end of the one-and-one, and Theiss came down the board and drew the foul with 1.6 seconds left.  He then wrapped up the victory by making one of two at the line, closing out the four-point victory and setting off the Gator faithful.

In all, nine different Gators found the scoresheet, as the senior core was complemented by Zabriski's nine points.  Five Allegheny players accounted for the team's 15 three-pointers, as O'Donnell and Zabriski each hit three and Tritto two.  The 15 treys were the most for an Allegheny squad since it hit a team-record 16 on Feb. 19, 2003 against Hiram. 

Denison (12-13, 8-10 NCAC) was led by Brad Woodward's 19 points and Alex Longi's 18.

Prior to the game, the team's six seniors were honored in a pregame ceremony, with the victory ending their careers on a high note.  Stanko, the 19th all-time leading scorer in Gator history with 1,071 points, also ends his career fourth all-time in three-point field goals (174) and fifth in career free throw percentage (.822).  Corbin ends the season as the North Coast Athletic Conference's leader in assists, averaging 5.7 per game, while his 419 career helpers place him fifth in team history.