Goshen College

GOSHEN, Ind. - Men's basketball tipped off their 2026-27 campaign on Saturday, where the Maple Leafs welcomed the Warner University Royals. The Leafs fought hard down to the last seconds, but ultimately fell 78-81.

In the pregame, Marcus Northern was recognized for having crossed the 1000-point threshold at the end of last season, coming into his senior year with 1018. 

The Royals got off to a fast start in the first half, establishing a 12-4 run, with seven of their points coming from Seth Childers. From here, the Leafs went on a 13-4 run, with points coming from Marcus Northern, Kevin Cota, Langelihle Ntiwane and Kamren Williams.

The Royals then built a lead of as big as nine with 7:45 left in the half. Joshua Gentry got the Leafs back up and running with two good free throws, before a three-pointer from Caleb Thompson brought Goshen to within four. 

Warner stretched their lead back out to nine through a brace of two-pointers from Kenny Greenling. Cota then led a Goshen run as he scored five points for the Leafs in a row. The lead would continue to swing between four and seven throughout the remainder of the half. Levi Sawatzky scored his first three pointer for Goshen, which was their last points of the half. The Royals extended their lead to five to end the half, and went in ahead on a score of 44-39.

Warner continued to keep Goshen at arms reach at the start of the second half. An and-one from Kyree McKelton got them up and running, before Williams replied with a set of free throws for Goshen. Bryson Castillo scored on a two-pointer and from beyond the arc to give the Royals their first double digit lead of the contest.

The lead lingered around the 10 point mark, with the Royals extending to a lead of 13 with 7:30 left to play. From here, the Leafs began to chip away at the Royals lead. Thompson started the Leafs off with three successful free throws, before Williams scored a two, followed by a three from Northern. Williams scored another two-pointer, before Braden Allen went 1-for-2 at the free throw line to bring the Leafs back to within four.

With a minute left, Sawatzky hit another three-pointer to cut the Royals lead to two. The teams then exchanged free throws, with Marcel Pace scoring for the Royals before Northern converted on two for Goshen. The final scoring went to the Royals and Childers, who converted both of his attempts, giving Warner a three point victory. 

Cota equaled his career high with 20 points, while Northern scored 15 points to bring his career total to 1,033. Sawatzky scored 10 points, the first time since 2021 that a freshman has started the season opener and scored 10 or more points in it. 

The Maple Leafs are back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 28 as they host the Judson University Eagles. Tip off is set for 7 p.m.