Seattle Academy Spoils Host Lancers Christmas Party

Seattle Academy Spoils Host Lancers Christmas Party
By Steven Dion

The nightcap of the first round of the Sterling Athletics Christmas Classic featured the Cardinals of Seattle Academy and host Kennedy Catholic. Despite their 1A classification, the SA Cardinals carry a much deeper roster as their team of fifteen outnumbers their 3A counterpart by five players. Additionally, the Cardinals are composed of entirely upperclassmen with the exception of sophomore guard Ian McManus. Conversely, Kennedy’s Spencer Weisberg is the lone senior on the young Lancers squad from the Seamount League. Would Kennedy be able to feed off their home crowd en route to the second round of the Christmas Classic?

The first four minutes of the contest were sloppy from an offensive standpoint as Kennedy was stuck at three points for extended time. Seattle Academy was slow out of the gates too as their star trio of Daniel Davydov, Ben Gerke, and Jeremiah Hobbs combined for seven points in the first eight minutes. After trailing 11-5 in the first quarter, Kennedy’s offense woke up. The Lancers netted seven field goals and earned some trips to the charity stripe where they knocked down four of five. Seattle Academy upped their efficiency in the second frame too as their seventeen points protected their lead heading into halftime. Seattle Academy’s ability to keep all four Lancer posts scoreless in the first half earned them a 28-24 lead into the break.

After knocking down only one three-ball in the first half, Seattle Academy found their touch from the perimeter in the third quarter. Gerke and Davydov both drained two from downtown in a back-breaking third frame for the Lancers. The Cardinals were able to increase their point total in each successive quarter whereas Kennedy experience a significant dropoff after their strong second frame. Leading by eleven going into the final eight minutes, the Cardinals were able to allot minutes to their bench and put the game into cruise control down the stretch. Burying nine of eleven free throws in the fourth put a stamp on the contest as the senior Daniel Davydov continued his consistent scoring with seven of his game-high twenty two coming in the final quarter. When the dust settled, Seattle Academy rolled to a 65-45 win.

Top Performer:
Seattle Academy
Daniel Davydov – 22 points (8/10 FT’s)