WHEATON, Ill. - Senior guard Zack Leahy (Rossford, Ohio/Rossford) tallied 16 points and seven assists and freshman post Brock Kiesler (Louisville, Ky./St. Xavier) came off the bench to contribute 13 points and eight rebounds to lead Wittenberg to a 69-62 victory over Wisconsin-River Falls.

The win moved the Tigers into the championship game of the Lee Pfund Classic at Wheaton College against either the host Thunder or Blackburn on Saturday, Nov. 16.

Thirteen different players saw action in the season-opener for Wittenberg, with nine players scoring at least one point in the game. Leahy shot 3-of-10 from the field, but he was clutch down the stretch from the free throw line. He canned 8-of-10 overall from the charity stripe, including 5-of-6 over the final 5:18 as the Tigers fended off each UW-River Falls challenge.

Wittenberg held a commanding 48-35 rebounding advantage in the game, and the Tigers shot 41 percent from the field, compared to 36 percent for UW-River Falls. Junior wing Sam Collins (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) and senior forward Cole Bond (Canton, Ohio/St. Thomas Aquinas) added 11 points apiece, and the tandem combined for 10 rebounds.

The game was the first-ever meeting between Wittenberg and Wisconsin-River Falls, although it was the fifth different member of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference to line up opposite the Tigers. Wittenberg has won five of the six games against WIAC member schools, with the only loss coming in 2003 against Wisconsin-Eau Claire.