Lynchburg, Va. -- University of Lynchburg's men's basketball dropped its season-opener to Mary Washington 85-58 Tuesday night. 

After losing their top-three scorers from last season, the Hornets looked to debut their new up-tempo offense in front of a packed Turner Gymnasium. Sophomore Mason Makovec stepped up after coming off the bench and led the team with 10 points. He did not miss from the floor on three field-goal attempts and converted all four of his free throws.

The Hornets came out pushing the ball up the floor with quick possessions and implementing a full-court press after makes. After the first media timeout, the Hornets trailed 15-8, but with some adjustments from 15th-year head coach Hillary Scott, the Hornets went on a 17-5 run to take a five-point advantage with eight minutes to play in the first half. During the scoring spree, first-year Piercen Young nailed his first-career 3-pointer on an assist from Miles Taylor. Later on in the run, Taylor made a 3 to put the Hornets ahead.

However, the Eagles persevered towards the end of the half despite the raucous environment created by Lynchburg's annual CODE RED game. The teams went into the halftime break knotted up at 35. In the first half, 10 Hornets found their way into the scoring column and were led by junior Trey Pittman with seven points. 

The second half unfolded differently for both sides. Mary Washington's Greg Rowson scored 14 to lead the way for the Eagles in the second half. He finished with 17. The strong push from the veteran along with the consistent scoring from the Eagles proved too much for the Hornets as they fell 85-58

The Hornets shared the wealth well with ten players finding their way into the scoring column. Taylor and Young both snagged six rebounds, and the team shot 86.4% from the free-throw line.

The Hornets (1-0) will have a chance to bounce back on Saturday as they travel to take on No. 4 Christopher Newport Saturday, Nov. 12 at 7 p.m.

Visit Lynchburg athletics' home online, LynchburgSports.com, anytime for up-to-the-minute news on all Hornets sports and coverage from the Lynchburg Hornets Sports Network. Click here to sign up for email and text alerts from Lynchburg athletics.

Give Lynchburg Sports a like on Facebook, and follow Lynchburg athletics on Instagram and Twitter.

--LYN--