Parker Turley

FORT WORTH, Texas- Senior Guard Vydal Bradford led all scorers to propel Texas Wesleyan to an 84-62 Victory over Arlington Baptist (0-1) in the season opener for both teams Saturday at the Sid Richardson Center.
 
The Rams honored their 2006 and 2017 National Championship teams at halftime, and honored the memory of Athletics Hall of Famer Jan Fersing, who passed away earlier this year.  Read more about Jan Fersing below.
 
 Bradford, a senior scored 22 points on 9 of 15 shooting, including one 3-pointer. Payton Sallee, Elijah Elliot, and Davon Berry also scored in double figures for the Rams. All 8 Rams that played in the game scored a point.
 
In the first half, junior Payton Sallee became the 23rd member Men's Basketball 1,000 point club. Sallee entered the season with 988 career points and scored 17 points in the contest for the Blue and Gold. He sits at 1,005, 15 points behind 22nd all-time scorer Aaron Whaley (2000-03). Kevin Kenny (1990-94) is the scoring leader with 1,838 career points.
 
 The Rams played stifling defense as they held Arlington Baptist to 42 percent shooting from the field and only allowed 35 points in the first half.
 
The Rams shot 28 percent from beyond the arc making 8 of their 28 3-point attempts. The Rams dominated in the paint, outscoring the Patriots 44-26. For the game, Texas Wesleyan shot 51 percent from the field (34-66) and made eight of their nine free throws (89 percent). 
 
Senior Davon Berry contributed 15 points off the bench for the Rams. The Rams bench outscored the Patriots bench 24 to 7.
 
For the Patriots, Trey Ballard scored 26 points on 11 of 23 shooting from the field. Arlington Baptist shot 42 percent from the field, only connecting on 24 of 57 shots. 
 
Texas Wesleyan improved to 6-0 all-time against Arlington Baptist.
 
The Rams (1-0) will host Dallas Christian College on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at the Sid Richardson Center.
 
About Jan Fersing
 
Earlier this year, Texas Wesleyan lost a dear friend and beloved Ram basketball supporter in Jan Fersing. Although never a Texas Wesleyan student, Jan has been an integral part of our community for many years, including serving the last 15 years as a member of the Board of Trustees. One of his favorite things to do was sit in the front row at Texas Wesleyan basketball games and cheer on the Rams. In addition to his advocacy and love for Texas Wesleyan, Jan was a major philanthropic supporter of the university, and we will forever be grateful for his generosity. Texas Wesleyan honors the memory of Jan Fersing, a true Champion of Character, for his endless support of the Rams.
 
Fersing grew up in Vermont and attended Cornell University, graduating in 1958 with an engineering degree.  He served the U.S. Navy for two years before going to work for IBM.  He later went back to school and, in 1964, earned an MBA from Harvard University.  Though neither he nor any of his four children attended Texas Wesleyan, he prefers to donate both time and money here rather than to his Ivy League roots.  Fersing credits a professor at Harvard for suggestion that everyone spend 30 percent of their lives in public service, and he has said, "The money I give to Wesleyan wouldn't even create a ripple in the Harvard pond, so it doesn't mean anything.  Here, I can see not only my funds at work, but I can see myself at work.  I can make a difference."
 
He certainly has made a difference.