ROCKY MOUNT, NC (November 29, 2008)-When attempting to pinpoint potential game changers in his pregame scouting report, it's a safe bet to assume that Shenandoah University head coach Robert Harris identified the likes of Turner King (Roanoke, VA/Roanoke Catholic), Shane Payne (Weston, FL/Sagemont) and Jonathan Mudd (Miami, FL, American), three players who lead Hampden-Sydney in one or more statistical categories.

Unfortunately for the Hornets, the game changers emerged from a bit further down the early season stat sheet.

Senior point guard Byron Lawton (High Point, NC/Wesleyan) and sophomore guard Matt Partsch (Roanoke, VA/Hidden Valley), who entered Saturday's contest with Shenandoah averaging 3.3 and 5.0 points-per-game, respectively, combined for 31 points to lead the Tigers (2-2) to an impressive 89-67 victory over the USA South representative Hornets.

Lawton (16 points) and Partsch (15 points) were willing participants in another shooting clinic by the Tigers' offensive charges, as Hampden-Sydney shot 58.5 percent from the floor including an 11-for-18 (61.1 percent) performance from beyond the arc. Partsch nailed all five of his three-point attempts, three of which came in the first half and helped the Tigers turn a narrow 15-13 lead at the 11:16 mark into a 36-26 cushion with 3:44 to play in the opening stanza.

A Lawton three-pointer, his second of the first half, pushed the Hampden-Sydney lead back to 10 at 41-31 with 2:28 to go. Moments later, King finished off the half in style with a turnaround, baseline jumper as time expired, his 16th first half point, to give the Tigers a 43-33 lead at the break.

Hampden-Sydney opened the second half on a 12-4 run and took a 55-37 lead on two King free throws with 14:33 remaining in the game. As the half wore on, the Hampden-Sydney defensive pressure picked up, keeping Shenandoah (2-4) at a safe distance on the scoreboard. A Ben Jessee (Midlothian, VA/Cosby) triple from the right wing extended the Tiger lead to 26, 71-45, with 10:01 to play.

Hampden-Sydney's bench continued the strong play in the final moments as Cale Phillips' (Raleigh, NC/Cardinal Gibbons) three-point play with 2:29 to go gave the Tigers their largest lead of the game, 86-58. H-SC's reserves closed the game out in solid fashion, as Larry Henshaw (Petersburg, VA/Prince George) and Fitz Robertson (Queens, NY/South Kent) finished with five and four points, respectively.

In addition to his career-high 15 points, Partsch pulled down a game-high seven rebounds. King led all scorers with 19 points and recorded five rebounds for the contest. Lawton dished out four assists while Payne registered six points, seven boards and five helpers.

Kenny Robertson led the Hornets with 13 points and was the only Shenandoah player in double figures. Kevin Kline turned in a solid performance with nine points and three rebounds.

The Tigers outrebounded their fourth straight opponent, snagging 37 boards as opposed to just 25 for the Hornets. Hampden-Sydney held Shenandoah to 34.6 percent shooting in the decisive second frame and 40.7 percent for the game.

Hampden-Sydney returns to action tomorrow afternoon when it tips-off against tournament host North Carolina Wesleyan in the final game of the South Region Hoops Challenge. Game time is scheduled for 3:00 pm.