OWINGS MILLS, Md. – Stevenson junior forward Erik Fisher scored 18 points, but Hood senior guard converted a three-point play with 17 seconds left, and then sank two free throws with 4.5 left as the visiting Blazers edged the Mustangs, 75-72, Saturday afternoon in Commonwealth Conference action at Owings Mills Gymnasium.

The loss is the second straight for Stevenson (16-7, 9-5 MAC) after running off seven consecutive wins from Jan. 14-Feb. 7.  Hood (12-11, 8-6), meanwhile, climbs to within one game of the Mustangs for second place in the Commonwealth Conference.

Cook led all scorers in the game with 27 points for Hood, and proved to be the difference down the stretch.  Four Mustangs scored in double figures, led by Fisher who also grabbed eight rebounds.  Junior Christian Roberts added 15 points and four assists, while senior Colby Giacubeno scored 13, including a trio of the three-pointers, and senior Justin Kuntz chipped in 11.

The action was tense throughout as the teams went back-and-forth in a game that featured six lead changes, while the teams were tied on eight other occasions.

The defenses controlled the early stages with Hood finally getting on the scoreboard over two minutes in with a lay-in from Trevor Magnuski.  Two minutes later Fisher got the Mustangs on the board with a reverse lay-in, but Hood responded with five straight to claim a 7-2 lead with 15:06 left in the first half.

Fueled by Roberts' hot hand, the Mustangs climbed back within one, 12-11, just three minutes later.  First, the veteran guard hit a three from the right wing to surpass the 1,000-pt. plateau for his career, and then after a basket by Cook for the Blazers, Roberts converted a lay-in.  Roberts is just the ninth player in school history to score at least 1,000 points in a career.

With just under nine minutes to play in the period, Giacubeno brought the Mustangs level, taking a feed off of an inbounds pass from Fisher and draining a three-pointer from the corner.  Two free throws from sophomore Ryan Hill then gave Stevenson its first lead of the game, 18-16, at the 8:00 mark.  The lead was short-lived, however, as Hood answered with a 6-0 run to retake the lead, 22-18.

The teams then went back-and-forth over the remaining four minutes of the half, trading the lead twice. The Mustangs took the upper hand with a 37-33 halftime lead thanks to a buzzer-beating three-pointer by junior Sean Farr.

Stevenson continued its run out of the break, scoring the first five points, the last two on a reverse lay-in by Kuntz, to build a nine-point advantage, 44-35.  Hood answered with a 12-4 run, however, to edge back to within one with just under 15 minutes to play.

The Mustangs were able to build their lead back to five on two occasions, but a 7-0 run over a span of three minutes gave the Blazers the lead once again, 58-56.  Stevenson hung tough and withstood the spurt, grabbing the lead back at 64-63, on another basket by Hill.

The teams could not separate themselves in the latter stages before Cook made the difference for the Blazers in the final minute of play. 

Following Cook's three-point play, the Mustangs got possession, but turned the ball over and sent Cook to the line.  After his successful free throws, the Mustangs had one final chance, but Giacubeno's desperation three-point went long off the backboard.

The Mustangs wrap up the home portion of their 2014-15 regular season on Tuesday evening when they host Lycoming.  Tip-off at Owings Mills Gymnasium is scheduled for 8:00 p.m.