May 10, 2023 | by Taylor Pill

WATERTOWN, Wis. -- At the semester's-end post-season Athletic Awards Assembly, head coach Rob Fuller and the Maranatha Men's Basketball team looked back on an exciting and challenging 2022-23 campaign.

The big headlines going into the season were two-fold: first, this was Coach Rob Fuller's first year at the helm of Maranatha Men's Basketball. Second, he inherited a grueling schedule of mostly NCAA Division III mainstays from the surrounding Midwest Region. So when the Sabercats started with a nine-game losing streak, it was looking like a long, hard winter.

But persistence pays off, and the Sabercats notched their first wins of the season in style, going two-for-two at the Faith Christmas Classic in December. Maranatha handled Calvary University 71-58 before knocking off Faith Baptist Bible College 88-86 in a dramatic overtime thriller thanks to a three-pointer from Caleb Moultrie.

Cometh the hour cometh THE MAN ��

Caleb Moultrie delivered a Maranatha-Faith moment that we will remember for a long, long time. �� pic.twitter.com/9g1Vp4ex9d

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) December 13, 2022

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The momentum for the rest of the season was limited to North Region wins, as the Sabercats topped Moody Bible Institute twice before the NCCAA North Region Tournament, where they would manufacture one of the most memorable moments in recent program history.

Down 80-85 to Oak Hills Christian College with less than 10 seconds left, the Sabercats managed to tie the game, send it to overtime, and come out 102-93 in a North Region classic. Mike Mertes did the honors with a three-pointer for the record books.

5.6 seconds left: �� 80-85 ��
0.0 seconds left: �� 85-85 ��

UNFORGETTABLE. @TheNCCAA @DII_North_Reg @NCCAAChamps pic.twitter.com/9VPAivaxBp

— Maranatha Athletics (@MBUSabercats) March 1, 2023

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"This team had a lot of stuff to overcome this season," said Head Coach Rob Fuller at the end of the season. "Mainly the fact that they got a new coach and needed to adjust, so it's been a great year and I've truly enjoyed getting to know them."

Despite the losses, the Sabercats had a number of individual awards to celebrate.

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AWARDS

The team awards from Coach Fuller were as follows:

Freshman of the Year - Brayden Cox

Coach's Award - Josh Davis

Most Valuable - Caleb Moultrie

Awards from the NCCAA National Office were as follows:

NCCAA All-Region - Caleb Moultrie (3rd Team), Josh Davis (Honorable Mention), Malachi Herbster (Honorable Mention)

Scholar-Athlete - Malachi Herbster

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SENIORS

The Sabercats recognized three men that concluded their fourth season: Josh Davis, Malachi Herbster, and Caleb Moultrie.