Grace College’s Erik Bowen skies for two against Ohio Christian Wednesday night. (Photo by Chantel Shetler)

WINONA LAKE – In the last game before the NCCAA National Championships, Grace’s men’s basketball team fell 94-80 to Ohio Christian on Wednesday.

The Trailblazers (19-14) won the Midwest Region championship as a result and will play in the national tournament. Grace was already assured a place at NCCAA Nationals as a result of being the host school.

The NCCAA National Championships run from March 15-18 at Grace’s Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center. The tournament field and brackets will be unveiled on March 11. To find out more info on the national tournament, including banquet, ticket and streaming information, visit www.gclancers.com/nccaa.

Erik Bowen had an impressive game with 23 points and seven rebounds, but Tim Swanson earned the spotlight in the second half with a flurry of 3-pointers. Swanson went 5-for-5 from beyond the arc for a career-high 17 points, including four triples in the final four minutes of the contest.

Wednesday’s game could not have started rougher for Grace. The Trailblazers blitzed the Lancers for 10 unanswered points over the first two minutes.

The Lancers (14-18), who struggled with their shot for much of the opening half, were slow to get back into the game. Ohio Christian opened up a 19-point lead at 31-12 midway into the half.

Grace did manage to end the half on an 11-4 run, capped off by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Stephen Halstead at the top of the arc. At halftime, Grace trailed 47-35.

The Lancers shot just 32 percent from the floor in the first half, including 3-of-11 from beyond the arc. Grace did get to the free throw line twice as much as Ohio Christian, but eight first-half turnovers stifled any momentum Grace could produce.

The second half started on a much more positive note for Grace. Bowen singlehandedly led the Lancers’ charge. He hit two free throws on the first possession then converted an and-1 to cut the gap to seven.

Over the next two minutes, Bowen hit two more shots, sandwiched by a fastbreak bucket from Logan Godfrey, to make the deficit 52-46 with 15:59 remaining.

But a timeout from the Trailblazers set the visitors back on course. Ohio Christian ran off a 13-2 run over the next four minutes to open up a 17-point cushion.

The lead eventually blossomed up to 25 as Grace substituted liberally in the second half. Swanson’s late 3-point barrage cut the Trailblazers’ gap nearly in half, but the damage was already done.

Ian Kissell swished a jumper just before the final horn sounded for a last consolation for the Lancers’ fans.

Bowen’s 23 points came on 6-of-11 shooting and 11-of-14 from the foul line. Godfrey had a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds, and Jaret Sons scored seven points off the bench.

Tre Olive scored seven, and Charlie Warner added five points.

For the game, the Trailblazers shot 54 percent from the floor, including over 50 percent in each half.