River Hill boys basketball controls glass in win over Long Reach
Every possession matters. With its size and athleticism, River Hill boys basketball has placed an emphasis on gaining extra possessions with offensive rebounds. That was on display Wednesday at Long Reach as River Hill grabbed 16 offensive rebounds, 11 of which came in the first half.
Those extra possessions allowed the Hawks to build a nine-point halftime lead, which they never relinquished in a 76-64 win over the Lightning.
“Athletically we’re right up there. We’re one of the best teams I’ve had in my 20 years coaching,” River Hill coach Matt Graves said. “When you have the athletes, the key is go crash the boards, go get a second shot, get a possession without us really running an offense. Soma Unegbu has really dictated that in the last couple games, he says, ‘I’m going to score a lot of points off of that offensive glass.’ Aiden Igwebe will grab a couple, but even Braden Sauritch will go in there and grab them.”
The game began with both offenses struggling before River Hill hit its stride. The Hawks (3-0, 3-0 Howard County) scored 16 points in the final 4:20 of the first quarter, including several second-chance baskets with OJ Ndu, Igwebe and Unegbu leading the charge. Meanwhile, River Hill’s backcourt trap threw off Long Reach’s offensive rhythm, resulting in a 12-point lead after one quarter.
Long Reach (3-1, 2-1) responded in the second, keyed by its two leading scorers RJ Barnes and Jayden Saunders. The duo brought the Lightning back within five late in the half. However, River Hill responded with backto-back buckets from Saurtich and Igwebe before the half to keep control.
The Lightning trimmed the deficit in the third as Barnes found success inside. Jayden Saunders connected from the perimeter to bring Long Reach within 44-42. However, River Hill didn’t flinch and outscored the Lightning 10-5 the remainder of the quarter. Sauritch started that stretch with a precise transition pass to
Anthony Przyzycki, while Ndu and Unegbu added buckets.
“We have a lot of guys coming back, a lot of experience,” Sauritch said. “We’ve been in those situations many times, especially last year. Sometimes last year it didn’t go our way and this year we wanted it to be different. Every day in practice we play with intensity like it’s a tie game, we’re always practicing those situations, so we were ready for that.”
Barnes scored inside on the Lightning’s opening possession of the fourth, prompting a River Hill timeout. During that break Graves preached, “We’re not tired yet, this is why we practice hard.” The Hawks heard his message loud and clear, executing a 14-0 run over the next four minutes, pushing their lead to 19, the largest of the game.
Several of those baskets were created off turnovers as Sauritch flew over from the weakside, dislodging the ball multiple times. Unegbu was often the beneficiary of those transition baskets with 10 of his game-high 24 points over that stretch.
While Unegbu led the way, the Hawks had multiple double-digit scorers for a third straight game. Igwebe’s 16 points and Ndu’s 13 offered another example of River Hill’s offensive balance, a key catalyst for its success in the early part of the season.
Lansdowne 73, Carver A&T 40:
Lansdowne got 24 points and seven steals from sophomore Trevor Howard and broke open an eight-point game late in the first quarter with a 20-0 run on the way to a convincing victory over visiting Carver A&T on Wednesday night.
Lansdowne (2-2) opened the scoring seven seconds after the opening jump when Ryan Kehoe grabbed the tap and raced to the basket before feeding Justin Myers for a quick layup. It was the start of a huge first quarter in which the Vikings built a 31-13 lead. Myers had eight points, Chase Phillips had nine and Howard had 10 in the first quarter alone.
The Vikings’ run began after a free throw by Joshua Musaazi with 1:39 left in the first quarter. Carver (0-3) didn’t score for nearly eight minutes after that and committed 21 turnovers in the first half. Howard had six steals in the second quarter.
“Our energy went up more and we played better defense,” Howard said. “I was just reading [the passes].”
Wrestling Archbishop Spalding 55, McDonogh 22:
“Poor boy,” a parent remarked as McDonogh’s 126-pound wrestler, Callum Bullers, trotted out to the mat to face Archbishop Spalding’s best-kept secret.
Freshman Taina Fernandez gazed upon her opponent without a flicker of emotion on her face. Forty-four seconds later, the 14-year-old popped up, her opponent still rolling on the ground after the pin. After shaking his hand, the freshman walked over to the exercise bike and began pedaling. The weigh-in for the Beast of the East Wrestling Tournament is in two days, after all.
One home dual meet and a handful tournament matches in, Fernandez is already a mythical entity among her school and league. Spalding basketball players crowded in to watch her, then left for their game disappointed they had to go before getting the chance.
Fernandez entered Archbishop Spalding with red streak in her black hair and a vault of gold. She crushed her opponent by a 10-0 tech fall at the Who’s Number One event in September. She just claimed the 62 kilogram title at the U15 Pan American Championships in November. She wrestles in college opens. She is the No. 1 130-pound girls wrestler and No. 14 girls wrestler overall in the nation, per the latest USA Wrestling national girls high school rankings.
She did not approach Wednesday’s dual like it was beneath her past, high-level tournaments in any way. Just the opposite.
“I still get nerves, the same excitement before every match,” Fernandez said. “In the room, my work ethic doesn’t change. That gives me the confidence that it’s just the same as any other tournament, or any other match. I just try my best.”
And yet, she’s not even a starter. Spalding coach Mike Laidley deployed her in Wednesday’s win against McDonogh among several backups he wanted to gain experience, while also reserving some starters for this weekend’s tournament. But when Laidley spoke of Fernandez, he smiled wide.
“We’re really excited for her,” the coach said. “We love watching her compete. She’s so accomplished for such a young age.”
Hers was one of many definitive and overwhelming Spalding victories.
Garretson danced with Cole Genua through three long periods but ended up with an 18-5 major decision. Vinny Paolucci (138) joined him with a 9-1 major decision. At 144, Zane Leitzel added a pinfall, as did Charlie Gessford at 157.
— Katherine Fominykh Century 37, Winters Mill 33:
Century coach Zach Blessing’s first county matchup couldn’t have gone much better.
Before he was a rookie coach for the Knights, Blessing was a stud at Winters Mill, where his name is displayed on banners in the school’s wrestling room.
Now, the Falcons gym holds a special place in his heart for a different reason. It’s now the site of his first Carroll County coaching win.
Players swarmed Blessing, who was all smiles after Century defeated Winters Mill in Wednesday night’s dual.
“I’m extremely proud of the group,” Blessing said. “Facing a short week off a tough tournament and to come back ready to go, I was super proud of how the guys and the girls responded.”
While the Knights saw early pinfall victories from Dylan Vroom and George Halligan, with Joey D’Orsogna later joining with a pin of his own, it was two late gritty victories that proved to be the difference.
“Pins are cool and exciting, but wrestling a full six minutes is what we talk about and work on,” Blessing said. “The work we put in and the grit we showed is what got us the win as a team.”
Dominic Damico, who was making his season debut after missing practice because of a lacrosse tournament and a broken hand suffered during football season, found himself in a battle with Winters Mill’s Matthew Pawley. Ultimately, the 190-pounder scored a takedown with less than a minute left to pull ahead and win an 8-6 decision.
Still needing a couple victories to clinch the dual, the very next match between Century’s Donovan James and Winters Mill’s Victor Tejada came down to the wire. After the two agile big men both earned a point for an escape, something clicked for the Knight’s 215-pounder. James, who missed all of last season with a torn meniscus, scored two takedowns in the final minute to take the bout, 5-2.
After Chidima Iziogo’s dominant 16-7 win over Matthew Pawley, the Knights could celebrate.