MARTINSBURG, W.Va. – The Cumberland Valley Christian Blazers put together a decisive second-half run and defeated Faith Christian Academy 48-35 Tuesday evening in a Mason-Dixon Christian Conference boys basketball game.

The Blazers (3-5, 1-1 MDCC) led 17-11 after a sluggish, physical first half but quickly fell behind 25-21 midway through the third quarter. However, their defense stifled Faith as they outscored the Falcons 27-10 the rest of the way to pick up their first MDCC victory of the season.

“It was a great game for our guys tonight,” CVCS coach Austin Sanders said. “We were able to play through adversity when we lost the lead in the third and really turned things around with our defense. When our defense is clicking like it was tonight, it fuels our offense and we are able to make runs late. Really proud of our play tonight.”

Blaine Minnier led the Blazers in scoring with 22 points, including 10 in the last quarter as the Blazers protected their lead. Minnier was 7-for-8 from the foul line down the stretch. He also pulled off four steals.

Caleb Eckert added 14 points, grabbed 14 rebounds, blocked seven shots and handed out four assists. Kenneth Hott contributed four steals and six rebounds to the defensive effort. Also scoring points for the Blazers were Nathan Statler with six (along with four assists), Isaac Kauffeldt with five and Triston Horn with one.

The Blazers held a 33-22 advantage in rebounding and forced 23 turnovers.