KANSAS CITY – The grind turned in to gold on Tuesday evening, as 16 players and 7 coaches persevered to win Vanguard University's first-ever NAIA Men's Division I Basketball Championship. The 2013-14 Pride team, which diligently and repeatedly prepared, practiced, played and prayed in order to position itself for such a moment, appeared poised and determined as it willed its way past Emmanuel (Ga.) (33-4) 70-65 in the title game to etch its mark in the VU history books.

In actuality, as the first squad in the program's 64-year history to earn a Golden State Athletic Conference regular season and tournament crown in the same season, and the only team to ever advance past the second round of the national tournament, and the all-time record holder for the most wins in a single season (32), the Lions did much more than make their mark, they re-wrote the book.

It was only fitting, then, that the masterpiece would have a perfect ending as the Blue and Gold became the only team in the 2014 Buffalo Funds-NAIA National Championship tournament to end its season with a victory. It was a collective effort written by 23: Rhett Soliday, Brian "Boomer" Roberts, Brad Davis, Kevin Heenan, George Tuttle, Shacolby Randell, Richard Solte, Myles Smith (SO/San Pedro, CA), Noel Larkins (SR/Placentia, CA), Chris Gorman (JR/Oceanside, CA), Preston Wynne (SR/Wellpinit, WA), Selle Hann (JR/Dakar, Senegal), Nuno Muandumba (JR/Scottsdale, AZ), TJ Burke (SO/Honolulu, HI), Logan Fougnies (FR/Tempe, AZ), DeAngelo Jones (JR/Cheney, WA), Zach Allmon (FR/San Luis Obispo, CA), Swing Chuang (SR/Hacienda Heights), Kirk Sheplay (SR/Paso Robles, CA), Jordan Diandy (JR/Dakar, Senegal), Tino Zaragoza (SR/Orange, CA), Brandon Wiehe (FR/La Mirada, CA) and Keith Mason (JR/Carson, CA).

"It feels amazing. We just praise God," head coach Rhett Soliday said. "We said before this game, win or lose, that we're going to give Him the glory, because He made this a special season. This game doesn't define our season and it doesn't define Emmanuel's season. We just happened to be on the winning end tonight because we made a few more plays. Our guys believed from day one. They have a strong faith in each other. And this may not be a big dream to a lot of people, but it's a huge dream to us."

Chris Gorman, the ESPN Player of the Game, put the Lions on the board with a slash and pull at 19:18, while Keith Mason got going early in the paint to put VU up 4-0.

The Pride's defense looked strong from the start, forcing three quick Emmanuel turnovers while not allowing an EC bucket until the 16:00 mark.

Mason scored again for Vanguard before Emmanuel posted five-straight to take its first lead of the night at 14:54.

Two offensive boards and a finish from Tino Zaragoza down low gave the lead back to the Blue and Gold, and Preston Wynne connected on his first trey of the night as the momentum swung in the Lions' favor.

Gorman rattled off four straight to pick up his sixth point on a back door dime from Mason.

Selle Hann was next to strike, sinking one from behind the arc to give VU an 18-11 edge at 10:20.

The Westmont cut benefitted the Lions again at 8:50, as Gorman found Wynne taking a cue from the Lions' GSAC rival's playbook.  

The well-rounded Pride got a floater from Zach Allmon to extend the margin to eight points (23-15), but EC brought the game within six on a flex cut by Patrick McCrary under the bucket.

Wynne picked up his second foul at 6:22 and Noel Larkins subbed into the contest, where he promptly stroked one from downtown courtesy of a kick-out by Mason.

With just over two to play in the period, it looked as though the EC defense would force a shot-clock violation on The Pride, but Gorman worked his way out of a trap and into the paint, where he sank a buzzer beater over Emmanuel's big men to put VU up 29-21.

The EC Lions, however, closed strong to come within four (29-25) as time expired to signal halftime.

Gorman paced the Lions through 20 minutes with eight points, three rebounds and an assist. Wynne, who played limited minutes due to foul trouble, managed five points, two boards and two assists. Mason led the effort on the glass with six and also dished a team-best three assists before the break.

McCrary scored nine in the half to lead all players.

Zaragoza put in some stellar minutes for the Blue and Gold, tallying a crucial bucket, two rebounds, a block and several clutch hustle plays, clearly focused on leaving everything he had on the court in the final game of his collegiate career.

EC's Luke Miller cut the gap to a point with a trey on the first possession of the second, but the determined Gorman stole the lead right back with a pair of free throws on the next trip up the hardwood.

Vanguard's full court defense then garnered a steal in the backcourt, leading to a Wynne bucket on the break, and Gorman let one go from deep on the ensuing possession to give the Lions a 36-28 advantage at 15:57.

Two minutes went by before Gorman sank another 3-pointer, and the following trip saw VU battle on the glass to grab three offensive rebounds en route to a Mason basket and a 10-point (43-33) Lions' edge.

From there, the Lions' game plan appeared to shift, as Vanguard began to look for its hungry big man down low.  

The strategy initially worked for VU, but Emmanuel soon began to heat up and at 7:42, a pair of Michael Stanley free throws brought EC within three points at 47-44.

A fancy Hann post move created some separation between the teams, but Miller hit his second 3-pointer of the competition to bring Emmanuel dangerously close (49-47), at the 7:00 mark.

Allmon then put in work on the glass, jumping over a pack of EC Lions at 4:15 to pick up an offense board and draw a foul where he extended the Lions' advantage back to five via the charity stripe.

With just under four remaining, a pair of Emmanuel free throws made it as close as it would get (53-51) but Wynne responded with a baseline fade-away, which he hit while being fouled to give Vanguard a bit of breathing room.

In the final minutes, Emmanuel was forced to foul, and Vanguard converted enough of its free throws to stretch the spread to five as time expired.

Allmon and Mason were excellent on the glass in the affair, notching 11 and 13 rebounds, respectively, as the VU Lions out-boarded the EC Lions 49-47. Jones and Wynne posted six apiece, while Gorman added five in the win.

"Right now, the feeling is surreal," Mason said. "Without God, none of this would be possible. It is truly a blessing that God put us in this position to come together to make history. This national championship is for everyone who is a member of the Vanguard family."

Wynne, who earned Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player honors in the tournament, scored a game-high 20 points on the night. Gorman dished three assists, grabbed two steals and tallied 18 points, while Mason managed 10 points to notch the Lions' lone double-double.

"This is the biggest moment of my life," Gorman said. "I am so happy for our guys and coaches. Thank you to all of our fans, supporters and family members. We love you guys and would not be champions if not for you all. I am so happy for Vanguard University and the direction that this program is headed. All of the glory goes to God."

Gorman also hit the 1,000-point milestone while playing at the national tournament. He currently boasts 1,051 points in his two-year career with The Pride. He will return in 2014-15 for his senior campaign.

-GOLDPRIDE-

All-Tournament Team
Preston Wynne, Vanguard (Calif.)
Chris Gorman, Vanguard (Calif.)
Michael Stanley, Emmanuel (Ga.)
Adrian Justice, Emmanuel (Ga.)
Luke Thomas, MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
Nick Syrie, MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
Kyle Teichmann, Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.)
Orlando Bass, Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.)
Monty Wilson, Georgetown (Ky.)
Marty Wilkerson, St. Gregory's (Okla.)

Chuck Taylor Most Valuable Player Award: Preston Wynne, Vanguard (Calif.)
Charles Stevenson Hustle Award: Luke Thomas, MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.)
Dr. James Naismith-Emil S. Liston Sportsmanship Award: Vanguard (Calif.)
Charles A. Krigel Award*: TJ Rosene, Emmanuel (Ga.)
Chuck Walden Memorial Trophy (given to Honorary Coaches of championship team): Kansas Gas Service – Steve Maurin
Frank Cramer Award^: Jim Sloss
2013 - 14 NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Player of the Year: Dominique Rambo, SAGU (Texas)
2013 - 14 Rawlings-NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Coach of the Year: Rhett Soliday, Vanguard (Calif.)
* given to coach of the team that best exhibits respect, civility, integrity and fair play, the qualities that define sportsmanship
^ presented annually to the person or persons who has done the most for the basketball tournament during a period of years
 

Game Notes

• With the championship ring tonight, Vanguard claims its second NAIA championship in any sport. The women's basketball team took home the 2008 hardware.
• The 32 wins on the season for Vanguard is the amount of combined wins for the Lions during the 2011-12 and 2012-13 seasons.
• Vanguard finishes as winners in its last nine games on the year.
• Both Emmanuel and Vanguard were making their first-ever appearance in the national championship final. This is Vanguard's third all-time trip to the national championship tournament, while Emmanuel is in its fourth tournament.
• Vanguard marks the 53rd different national champion since the tournament began in 1937.
• The state of California has now seen three different institutions win four national titles: Vanguard in 2014; Concordia in 2003 and 2012; San Diego State in 1941.
• With two championship game newcomers facing off, this marks the first time since 2009 when two rookies were in the title game and unseeded Rocky Mountain (Mont.) defeated unseeded Columbia (Mo.), 77-61.
• With Vanguard representing the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC) in the championship final, it marks the seventh time since 2003 and third time in the last five years that a GSAC program played in the title contest. The conference improves to 3-4 in the title game during that stretch.
• Emmanuel was the first team from the Southern States Athletic Conference to play in the title game since Faulkner (Ala.) won it in 2001.
• No. 8 seed Emmanuel becomes the first eighth-seed to reach the final since 1999. That year, No. 8 Mobile (Ala.) fell 63-60 to unseeded Life (Ga.).
• Vanguard becomes the second straight No. 6 seed to reach the championship final. SAGU (Texas) lost in the title game as the sixth seed in 2013, while Concordia (Calif.) was the last No. 6 seed to win the championship with an 88-84 overtime victory against Mountain State (W.Va.) in 2003.