After an unusual hiatus caused by record snows in the metropolitan area, the Cardinals headed north to Olney for an afternoon contest with the 15th ranked Good Counsel Falcons (15-7, 8-4). While the Falcons jumped out to an 18-2 lead in Alexandria against the girls at nearly the same time, the boys fell behind even further at 18-1! The guys put the brakes on that slow start, however, and began a steady counterattack that drew them back to 27-20 at intermission. They would continue to chip away at the Falcons, led by junior Antonio Rouse’s 17 points and classmate Patrick Hanafin’s 11 to actually take a 4-point lead in the final quarter of play. The redbirds couldn’t close out the deal, however, and Good Counsel recovered for a 51-45 win.
The Cards returned to Godley Gym on Sunday to face Paul VI Catholic (12-11, 4-10) in the second game of an afternoon varsity boy/girl doubleheader. Both teams showed their rust or their youth in a ragged, turnover plagued first quarter. Antonio Rouse continued his improved offensive production with a pair of three-pointers and the clubs were tied at 10 after one period. The Panthers used a 9-0 run against the turnover-prone Alexandrians to open a lead they were nurse for much of the remaining ballgame. The squads traded three pointers in four consecutive possessions giving PVI a 25-22 advantage which they sheparded to a 32-28 halftime lead.
The teams struggled evenly throughout the third quarter, Ireton closed the gap to 41-38 at the end of three quarters and seemed poised to move in for the **** in the final session. Patrick Hanafin, who scored 11 of his 17 points in the second half, took a nifty Tommy Gallinaro feed for a layup, then followed with another to hand Ireton a 42-41 lead, their first since the 10-6 advantage in the opening quarter. Marcus Hayes, who contributed three steals in the second half alone, turned one into a layup, then Rouse added a lay in and the Cardinals were up 49-45 with 4:49 left, and Panther starter freshman Stanford Robinson headed to the bench with his fifth foul. Sophomore Patrick Holloway converted a Panther steal into a three and Coleman Johnson scored to put PVI back in front 51-50, a lead they would not relinquish.
Hayes threw in a pair of free throws to draw Ireton to 55-53 with 1:18 remaining, then picked off another PVI pass and headed to the basket, only to lose a basket and pick his fifth foul on a charging call. Tilman Dunbar responded for the Fairfax school as they began to pull away, adding a pair of free throws, as did Holloway, and the lead soon ballooned 61-55. Patrick Hanafin would add a three pointer late to draw Ireton to within 63-59, but the Panthers were deadly from the free throw line, shooting 17 of 20 from the stripe, pulling away to a 68-61 victory in Alexandria.
Ireton (6-15, 1-12) takes to the road to finish out the regular season with games Tuesday at Bishop O’Connell, Friday at St Mary Ryken, and Sunday at Bishop McNamara before returning home in the last week of February for make up games with St Johns on Tuesday, Feb 23rd, and the senior night contest tentatively scheduled for Friday Feb 26th.
Processing your request, Please wait....
