Grotberg, Pioneers set scoring marks in Grinnell basketball victory

John Grotberg '09 became the Pioneers' all-time leading scorer and Grinnell established a new single-game scoring record in a 163-145 victory over the St. Louis-based school in non-conference action. The Pioneers' previous all-time best scoring output was 160 against Martin Luther College on Nov. 23, 2002. Grotberg's 36-point performance gave him 2,385 points for his career, surpassing Steve Wood's total of 2,379. Grotberg drained 10 3-pointers on the night, while teammate Bobby Long '09 hit nine treys en route to a career-high 44-point performance. David Arseneault '09 turned in yet another double-double with 28 points and 11 assists, while R.J. Roewe '09 and Matt Chalupa '12 scored in double figures with 13 and 12 points, respectively. Kale Knisley '11 grabbed nine rebounds. Grinnell had 35 3-pointers on the night, just two shy of the NCAA Division III record. Grinnell shot out to an 88-76 lead at halftime, tying the Pioneers' school record for first-half scoring. Leading by just two at 31-29, Grinnell went on a 16-2 tear to pull away. Arseneault had two 3-pointers and a pair of free throws in that span, Grotberg hit two treys and Long sank a basket. Fontbonne hung close, though, and still tailed by just nine points midway through the second half before Grinnell all but put the game away with a 12-4 run. Long began things with a 3-pointer and later added a free throw and basket. Arseneault and Chalupa also had treys during the spurt as the 6-3 Pioneers would never lead by less than double digits again. Josh Branch scored 30 points for Fontbonne, which dipped to 6-5. Grinnell jumps back into Midwest Conference play Saturday with a game at Illinois College. Game time at Jacksonville, Ill, is 3 p.m.