The Academy of the Holy Cross (14-4, 6-2) was a preseason favorite to content for the WCAC championship. They did nothing Thursday night to suggest they aren’t capable and ready for that challenge in a one-sided 86-29 win in Alexandria.
The Tartans opened the game quickly on offense and built a 14-0 lead in the games opening minutes. After a time out, Coach Derek Campbell’s squad mounted a brief counterattack on an 8-4 run and closed the first period down 18-10. The second period, indeed the remainder of the contest, was all Holy Cross however, and the purple clad visitors took at 43-16 advantage to the locker room at the intermission.
The Kensington, Maryland, visitors had a decided size advantage with post players in the 6’2″ – 6’4″ range shuttling in and out of the line up and dominating the smaller Cardinals on the boards and scoring at will inside the paint. Ireton’s Bianca Ojiegbe defended gamely but fouled out with 3:19 remaining in the third quarter, a testiment to Ireton’s match up problems. The Cards found themselves down 66-24 after three and Holy Cross and ten different Tartans scored for the 6th ranked squad on the evening.
Junior Lanae Montgomery led Holy Cross with 17 points and 6 blocked shots, while Pandor Wilson added 13, Swails off the bench chipped in 13, Akeila Bethel had 12, and Brown 10. Ireton (4-10, 0-8) was led by senior Laura Hart with 10 points, sophomores Mara Celis-Copeletti and Julia O’Brien each tallied 6 for the redbirds.
The Cardinals will host St Mary’s Ryken on Saturday, a weather-related rescheduled contest. The junior varsity, varsity doubleheader is scheduled for a 2pm and 4 pm tip off respectively and the Cardinals will host a second doubleheader on Tuesday when the Roadrunners of Elizabeth Seton visit Cambridge Road at 5 and 7pm.
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