The Inter-Ac is a gauntlet. Ten games against some of the toughest teams in the Philadelphia area. Everyone plays twice, one home and one away game.
Perhaps the hardest part about the Inter-Ac is the lack of playoffs. The champion is decided from just those ten games, making each and every one of them incredibly important in determining a championship.
SCH finished the first half of it’s season with a record of 4-1, suffering just one loss to 5-0 Penn Charter. While that places them firmly in second, the Devils need to play perfectly if they want a chance at a championship.
Their first opportunity was this Tuesday against Germantown Academy.
Head coach Julian McFadden spoke pregame about the matchup, emphasizing that “[We] need to come out with the energy for an Inter-Ac matchup.” He continued, saying “The first time we played them, we didn’t really have the energy needed to play in this competitive league.”
Last time, it was junior point guard Julian Sanders leading the Devils on a comeback. When asked about how he might be able to replicate that success, he said he needed to “crash the boards”, and “be aggressive.”
Early in the game, however, the Devils seemed to have tuned out. After coming off a game against Peddie, they now had to turn around for a back-to-back against GA, and it showed.
Their offense was struggling, the team was missing shots, the rebounding was shaky, and by the end of the first quarter, the Devils led by a meager 11-9 score. Things didn’t get better, as midway through the second, they only led 13-11.
In their moment of need though, junior Owen Kelly came alive, drilling a three-pointer from the wing, before grabbing a steal moments later, and making a beautiful pass to Julian Sanders, who laid it up for a quick score.
That momentum spurred SCH to a 24-14 lead at the half, and they never looked back. Both offense and defense improved after the break, with Kelly raining a flurry of threes to extend their lead.
Through the third and fourth, however, things only got better for the Blue Devils, who continued to demolish the Patriots, winning 63-45.
After the game, junior Alex Ormond commented on the win, saying he felt “great.” Ormond, a transfer, also commented on his experiences as a new guy on the team, saying that he felt welcome, and that they’re a “tight [knit] team”.
SCH will need to use that tight-knit teamwork today as they take on Haverford at 7:30.
