RIVER FALLS, Wis. (uwrfsports.com) - UW-River Falls lost their home finale at Page Arena in heartbreaking fashion when Carter Voelker hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer as time expired for UW-Platteville in a 57-54 win for the Pioneers. Julian Jackson led the Falcons with 23 points and was the only UWRF player to finish in double figures. Jackson finished at the basket with only five seconds remaining to tie the game at 54-54, but Quentin Shields drove the length of the floor and dished to Voelker as he fumbled the ball before firing the game-winner. 

The Falcons started the game out on fire, hitting five of their first six shots to take a 12-3 lead within three minutes. Logan Halvorson scored five points during the stretch in his first start of the year on Senior Day, and he finished with nine points as the second-leading scorer for the Falcons. The Pioneers responded with a 20-5 run, and Robert Duax hit two 3-pointers and a jumper to pace the team to go up 20-17. Matt Keller retook the lead on a 3-pointer to make it 22-20, but the Pioneers later finished on a 5-0 run to end the first half to go up 29-25 at the break. The Falcons were held scoreless for the final four minutes of the half and didn't make a field goal for the final six minutes after Keller's shot. UWRF was 43 percent from the field, while the Pioneers were 37 percent on nine more shot attempts.

The four-point lead was the biggest of the game for the Pioneers, and they didn't make a field goal for the first seven minutes of the second half. Duax finally made a shot to cut it to 34-35, but Clay Seifert responded with a 3-pointer to go up by four points. Neither team led by as many as four points again until the Pioneers went up 54-50 with only three minutes remaining after Duax's fifth 3-pointer to raise his total to 25 points. Seifert made two free throws with two minutes remaining, and the teams were held scoreless until Jackson's bucket in the closing seconds. Both teams were plagued with foul trouble throughout the game, and Austin Heidecker finished with 13 rebounds despite picking up three fouls within two minutes and having to sit for a majority of the final 10 minutes of the game.

Voelker was the only other play to finish in double figures besides Duax and Jackson with 11 points, and he also grabbed seven rebounds. The Pioneers finished only 31 percent from the field, but they had a 70 percent to 62 percent advantage at the free throw line. The Falcons dominated the game in the paint by a 22-8 advantage, but they only had eight points off the bench.

The Falcons are now 10-13 overall and 3-9 in conference, one game behind UW-Whitewater for the final spot in the WIAC postseason tournament. UWRF will be back on the road on Wednesday when they face off against UW-Eau Claire at 7 p.m.