
CLAYMONT – Archmere made a furious comeback against Wilmington Friends when the teams met in boys basketball on Feb. 3, but the Quakers did just enough to prevail in a 41-38 decision at Moglia Fieldhouse.
The first half ended with Friends leading, 18-15, as both teams displayed tough defense and deliberate offenses. Archmere’s Noah Blessington (St. Mary Magdalen Parish) tied the game early in the third with a three-point shot, but the Quakers went on a 10-0 run later in the quarter to take a 31-21 lead. Much of the damage was done by Ryan Tattersall. The Quakers forward broke a 21-21 tie with two free throws, and he added a mid-range jumper and another free throw during the run. Ryan Hagenberg (St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, Glen Mills, Pa.) snapped the streak with a layup for the final points of the third.
The teams went more than two minutes into the fourth quarter before Riley Schultz (St. John Neumann Parish, Bryn Mawr, Pa.) was on the receiving end of a long outlet pass for a layup that brought the Auks to within five, but Joey Winchell – playing in his first game for the Quakers after sitting for a few with an injury – answered by hitting a three.
The Auks’ got those points back on a triple by John Orsini (St. Thomas the Apostle Parish, Glen Mills, Pa.), who was shadowed by the Quakers’ Ethan Lukach throughout the first half. Blessington then scored with 3:32 to go, cutting the Quakers’ lead to three.
Archmere cut the lead to 38-36 on a three-pointer by Blessington with 1:30 to go, but that was as close as they would get. Friends got two free throws from Bryce Jackson to extend the lead to four with 21.6 seconds left, and, after Archmere got those back, Lukach made one free throw with a few seconds remaining, but the Auks’ potential game-tying three-point attempt was blocked by Tattersall as the buzzer sounded.
Final statistics were not available late Monday night. Wilmington Friends improved to 10-5 and hosts Wilmington Christian on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m., while the Auks (9-4) welcome Conrad on Thursday at 6:15 p.m.
Photos by Mike Lang.