Davis powers No. 5 Edmondson to hoops win
Visiting Red Storm blow past No. 13 Forest Park by 20
In the final seconds of the third quarter Thursday, Edmondson boys basketball team was still looking for a spark to help shake off scrappy Forest Park.
In a flash, junior reserve guard Xavier Davis provided it.
After Josiah Brown scored with seven seconds left to give the Red Storm the lead, Davis stole the inbounds pass and beat the buzzer with a 3-pointer in the left corner.
Suddenly leading by four points, the No. 5 Red Storm carried the momentum into a dominant fourth quarter to secure a 62-42 road win over No. 13 Forest Park in Baltimore City league play in front of a sold-out gym.
Sophomore forward Chase Foster went on to dominate the fourth quarter, scoring 12 of his game-high 21 points as the defending Class 1A state champions improved to 13-2 on the season. Kyrie Sherrod added 11 and all eight of Davis’ points came in the second half.
Forest Park, which got 16 points from Roosevelt Gardner, fell to 12-3.
At halftime, with the Red Storm down 20-19, coach Darnell Dantzler Sr. asked for more energy from Davis in the second half. He came through.
“I had a good talk with my coach and came out playing good defense, shooting the ball pretty well,” Davis said.
As for making the splash play that turned the game around, he said: “That feeling is just joy. Getting thrown in the game and playing alongside good teammates — they make you better.”
Against the bigger and deeper Red Storm, the Foresters pestered on defense and made enough big shots to lead for much of the first three quarters. When Sean Thompson scored off an assist by Gardner with 19 seconds left in the third quarter, they had a 37-36 lead.
Then came the Red Storm’s 5-0 run in the last seven seconds of the third quarter. Foster and Davis took over in the fourth, combining to score the team’s first 12 points to pull away.
The Foresters’ only field goal came in the game’s final minute with the Red Storm outscoring them 21-5 to win going away.
“Edmondson is a well-coached team, a state champion team,” Forest Park coach Roy Caster said. “I think we came out and executed the game plan well with good defense, sharing the ball and communicating up to the third quarter.
“We got in a little foul trouble and got a little frustrated. They hit a couple shots at the end of the third quarter that gave them the momentum and then we turned the ball
over several times in clutch situations.”
Unable to find a consistent flow throughout the first half and into the second, Dantzler was able to find the right combination and was appreciative of his bench. In addition to Davis, Robert Price came off the bench to score six points in the first half to help keep the Red Storm close.
“Basketball is a team game and it’s about trying to get all of them to play together,” he said. “Like I always say from the first man to the 12th man, I’m willing to play whoever is playing well. That’s what it’s all about, and the bench came in and gave us some quality minutes.”
Both teams return to league play Tuesday with home games at 5:15 p.m. Edmondson hosts Lake Clifton and Forest Parks meets Patterson.
Other boys basketball scores: Liberty 70, Westminster 49:
Tristan West scored a game-high 21 points and Cole Jernigan and Alex Thompson each had 12 points to lead the Lions over the Owls.
Charlie Hollman scored 14 points for Westminster.
Havre de Grace 62, Joppatowne 60: Brandell Stokes scored 13 points to lead the visiting Warriors over the Mariners. Havre de Grace led 33-25 in the first half. Phil Clark scored 13 points for Joppatowne.
C. Milton Wright 85, North Harford 47: The visiting Mustangs (11-1) beat the Hawks.
Girls basketball
Perryville 47, C. Milton Wright 26: Cienna Lilly and Alyssa Stanley each scored 13 points to lead the visiting Panthers over the Mustangs. Sam Wolfkill had nine points and eight rebounds for C.M. Wright.
Havre de Grace 41, Harford Tech 33: Azareya Whiting and freshman SaBree Knox both scored 10 points to lead the host Warriors over the Cobras. Whiting and Sanai Knox each grabbed 10 rebounds for Havre de Grace. Junior Bayleigh Carstetter scored seven points and Savannah Lawrence had six.
Bel Air 44, North Harford 36: Emily Signor had 17 points and 13 rebounds, but the visiting Hawks fell to the Bobcats. Caroline and Lauren Nicholson each scored seven points for North Harford.
Wrestling
Glenelg 40, Oakland Mills 28: Glenelg is a young group compared with previous seasons.
The youthful roster has grinded through a tough schedule featuring challenging public and private school opponents. Through that journey coach Matt Bichner encouraged his wrestlers to remain confident in their hard work and preparation. Tough matches mean growth.
One area in which that growth can be seen is bonus points, an area the Gladiators focus on during their two-hour practices. It paid off Thursday as the Gladiators beat Oakland Mills in a dual featuring two of Howard County’s top teams.
Oakland Mills took an early advantage with pins by Michael Cowen (113 pounds) and Matthew Cowen (120). However, Glenelg quickly struck back. Sophomore Jonathan Sexton (126) battled the Scorpions’ Orlando Castelan-Cortez for two periods, building momentum late in the second before ultimately earning the pin in the third.
Sexton’s victory sparked the Gladiators to four straight wins. Dwane Morgan Jr. (132) and Isaac Choi (138) each won by pin, while Collin Szczepanski (144) was victorious by major decision, pushing the Gladiators to a 28-12 lead.
The teams exchanged the ensuing two matches, which brought up Glenelg junior captain Gavin Harder (165). Harder is a fairly new wrestler but has emerged as a key leader for the Gladiators in his third season.
His bout with the Scorpions’ Braydon Fisher was tightly contested, but Harder’s takedown in the waning seconds of the second period built some separation. However, he wasn’t satisfied, mindful of the Gladiators’ focus on bonus points. In the third Harder finished off Glenelg’s fourth and final pin of the night.
— Jacob Steinberg
A depleted Franklin lineup, missing 17 wrestlers including five starters, raced to a 36-0 lead and cruised to a victory over host Catonsville.
Franklin got pins from Tucker Rudo (113 pounds), Xavier Gardner (120), Julian Epps (125), Max Conley (132) and Josh Gray (138) after Dylan Hurd (106) opened the scoring with a forfeit win.
Catonsville got on the scoreboard when Pau Muang pinned Vincent Rawlings at 144 pounds with one second left in the second period. Then Catonsville’s Solomon Gelete (150) beat Zach Chastan, 8-6, with a takedown 32 seconds into overtime after trailing 5-2 after the first period.
The momentum continued for the Comets when Shilone Robinson (157) pinned Chibuikum Ezeami 35 seconds into his match.
JaJa Williams gave Franklin the momentum back and extended the Indians’ lead to 39-15 with a 9-8 decision over Trae Sears.
Franklin 57, Catonsville 21: Boys swimming
Severn 73, Saints Peter & Paul 20: The visiting Admirals finished the regular season with a 7-0 record. Severn will compete in the MIAA B Conference championship meet Wednesday at McDonogh.