Lakewood, N.J. - Moral victories have never counted for much in the standings, but Georgian Court University continues to fight to the finish as the Lions suffered an 89-79 non-conference loss Saturday afternoon at home in their first-ever showdown with Molloy College.

Despite an 8-0 hole to start the affair, Georgian Court clawed all the way out to take a 13-11 advantage of its own at the 14:27 mark of the first half. Molloy proceeded to connect with an 18-6 counterpunch, going ahead by 14 (31-17) with 6:43 to go before the break.

Molloy, after coming out of intermission up by eight, inflated the cushion to 12 after a Josh Dennis (Jr.-Valley Stream, N.Y.) three-pointer made the score 54-42 at 16:03. GCU, with a miraculous 14-1 spurt of its own, vaporized the deficit and to knot the score at 56-all with 11:27 to go in regulation.

A pair of Mike Torre (Sr.-Massapequa, N.Y.) free throws at 11:13 put the visitors ahead by a pair, providing Molloy a lead they would never relinquish. The advantage would grow to 12 for the fourth time in the frame, thanks to a Curtis Jenkins (Sr.-Farmingdale, N.Y.) free throw at 1:10, icing the road win for the 3-3 Lions.

Despite the setback, GCU's Caleb Bowser topped all players with his 25 points, including 9-for-11 shooting from the charity stripe. The junior, who has eclipsed the 20-point plateau in four of his seven outings this season, ranks second among all CACC players with his 21.0 points-per-game.

Sean Barksdale, seeing his first action of the year for Georgian Court, provided a much-needed offensive spark with 17 points, including a game-best four three-pointers. Matt Ringel, with his 12 points and nine rebounds, came within one board of his second double-double of the season. Bryce Council dazzled at the point with his 10 assists.

Nick Corbett (Jr.-Staten Island, N.Y.) contributed 24 points in the Molloy win, followed by Jenkins with his 18 on the day. Torre authored a double-double consisting of 17 points and 10 rebounds. Dennis pocketed 14 points and six helpers while Will Muller (Fr.-North Babylon, N.Y.) cleared the glass of 10 boards.

Georgian Court (1-7) now prepares for its Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference opener this Tuesday night with an 8:00 p.m. divisional contest at Goldey-Beacom College.