YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Thiel College men's basketball team dropped a 69-55 decision to Division I Youngstown State University Wednesday night at the Beeghly Center.

The Tomcats trailed the Penguins by three at half and tied the game at 45 with 11:01 remaining in regulation. YSU then went on a 24-4 scoring run to put away the Tomcats.

Luke Kochka (Monroeville, Pa. /Gateway) and Khari Bess (Waldorf, Md./Maurice J. McDonough) led the Tomcats offensively. Kochka paced the Tomcats with a game-high 19 points on 7-of-14 shooting including three three-pointers. Kochka also reeled in five rebounds. Bess had 15 points on 6-of-12 shooting with six rebounds, six assists and five steals.

Bobby Hain and Jordan Andrews each scored 13 points for the Penguins.

The Tomcats will start their conference schedule on Wednesday, Dec. 2 when they host the Geneva Golden Tornadoes. The action is scheduled to start at 7:30 from Beeghly Gymnasium.