WILKES-BARRE – The Wilkes men's basketball team picked up their first Landmark Conference win of 2025 on Wednesday night as they bested Goucher College 78-61 at the Marts Center.

Wilkes improves to 10-2 on the year and sit 4-1 in Landmark Conference play, while Goucher falls to 2-10 overall with a 1-4 record in conference play.

The Colonels took an early 9-7 lead thanks to five points from a returning Eli Becker (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra) and extended the lead to 16-7 with layups from Joey Zvorsky (New Cumberland, PA/Cedar Cliff) and Jack Argento (Hershey, PA/Hershey). Two buckets from the Gophers brought the visitors within one point, but a 13 point scoring run put the Colonels up 26-12 with seven minutes left in the half.

The hosts scored eight of the final 13 buckets of the half, including three possessions finished off beyond the arc by Cayden Merrifield (Scranton, PA/West Scranton), Daniel Santaniello (Roaring Brook Twp., PA/Scranton Prep), and Argento to put the Colonels up 46-22 at halftime.

Goucher slashed the lead by half to open the second half, going on a 12-0 run in the first five minutes to make it a 46-34 game. Lucas Lesko (Northampton, PA/Northampton) finally put the Colonels on the board with a layup, but the Gophers continued to close the gap, getting the lead down to single digits 54-45 halfway through the period.

The teams continued to trade points back and forth, before the Colonels pulled away on an 11-4 run to put the hosts back up to a comfortable 72-54 lead. Head coach Izzi Metz then cleared the bench with two minutes to play and cruised to the win.

Lesko led the Colonels with 19 points and nine rebounds. Merrifield matched Lesko for the team-high in boards, adding ten points as well. The two now both sit 20 points away from reaching the 1,000-career point milestone.

Argento was the third Colonel in double-digit scoring with 15 points, while Zvorsky dished out a season-high six assists to lead the team.

Darnell Morris led the Gophers with 18 points. Chima Egeonu picked up seven boards, while Darrell Green led the team with three assists.

The Colonels now prepare to head to the City of Brotherly Love for their next contest, a matchup with Elizabethtown College at The Palestra on Sunday, January 12. Tip off against the Blue Jays is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.