Forward Cristian Rodriguez played a complete game, and the Lake Forest men's basketball team showed composure and grit on the road, earning a 74-69 victory Friday afternoon against Ripon College.
 
The senior from Somerset, Texas, stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points and eight rebounds; he was also an effective and willing passer with six assists, consistently kicking the ball out to open shooters when the defense collapsed down on him.
 
Sharpshooter Luke Arington added 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting from three-point range, and senior Alex Forowycz contributed 12 points and a team-high nine rebounds.
 
The Foresters (4-5, 1-1 MWC) showed incredible resilience to earn the victory. After Lake Forest led for nearly the entire first 35 minutes of the game, Ripon took its first lead of the game with 4:39 to go 59-58.
 
Lake Forest would turn to its seniors in crunch time, as Rodriguez made a layup to retake the lead at 60-59. After a Red Hawks three-pointer, Forowycz hit just his second three of the night, coming off an assist from Rodriguez to give the Foresters a lead it would not relinquish.
 
Arington added on another three-pointer off a Forowycz offensive rebound to put the Foresters up 66-62 with just over two minutes to go. Ripon would again pull to within one with under a minute to play, but Forowycz found Rodriguez for a layup to keep the hosts at an arm's length.
 
Marko Visnjevac was calm under pressure at the free-throw line, making all four of his attempts in the final 30 seconds.
 
Arington led the Foresters' offense with 12 points in the first half, including making 4-of-5 from three-point range before halftime. Lake Forest used a 15-4 run across just over three minutes to turn a 10-10 stalemate into a 25-14 Foresters advantage. 
 
Lake Forest will play its next game on Dec. 29 in Dubuque, Iowa, for its first game in the Loras Holiday Classic. The Foresters will take on North Central College at 4 p.m.