Patriots top Panthers

by TOM UTESCHER

An interesting mix of players blended smoothly last Wednesday evening for Germantown Academy, as the Patriots won a summer skirmish with Cheltenham High School, 33-16, in the Hatboro Horsham league.

Returning varsity mainstays Caroline Doty, Lindsay Freid, Colleen Magarity and Jenna Washabaugh were on hand for GA, while guard Jesse Carey had a commitment elsewhere. Varsity reserve Corinna Fleming and ascending JV player Tiana North played, as well, and spectators also got a look at three incoming freshmen, post player Meredith Carber, guard Jess Erb, and guard/forward Laura Karbach.

A pair of Freid free throws got the scoreboard moving, then Doty scored on an inside move and fed Magarity for a fast-break bucket to put the Pats ahead, 6-0. Cheltenham soon broke up the shutout, and the Panthers pulled within two points of the leaders when Jackie Dooley drove the lane to make it 7-5. Germantown had a little more breathing room by the end of the half, which ended with Fleming scoring on the break to make it 14-9.

Both teams had missed numerous lay-ups in the opening period, and after the interlude GA converted more of these attempts while Cheltenham continued to struggle on the inside, partly due to a strong defensive effort by Germantown’s Washabaugh.

Brittney Gunn, a big center with a soft touch, deftly drained a baseline shot for Cheltenham at the start of the second half, and a pair of Panther free throws made it a one-point game, at 14-13. Offense by Doty, Freid, and Erb opened up an eight-point lead for the Patriots, and Cheltenham never got so close again.

Doty displayed some of her impressive scoring moves to finish up with a dozen points, while Freid (nine points) flew all around the court to gobble up loose balls, even wrestling for a few with the imposing Gunn.

Washabaugh scored the last field goal of the game to finish with five points and set the final margin at 17.