The Panther varsity boys basketball team added another win to their record when they beat Northern Lehigh Tuesday night.
Northern Lehigh was first on the scoreboard, but the Panthers came back as the leader by the end of the first quarter. Cam Allen, Will Smith, Josh Snead and Aidan Zawodny added points for Saucon. The score was 15-9 Saucon at the end of the first quarter.
Smith and Snead were responsible for several turnovers, resulting in additional points for the Panthers, which kept them in the lead. Cody Zrinski, Zawodny and Allen also added points for Saucon. Northern Lehigh continued to trail the Panthers at the end of the second quarter with the score 37-22 Saucon.
Halftime entertainment was provided by the 5th/6th youth team, the Huskies, who broke into two teams and played each other.
Jake Nichols, Allen, Snead and Smith scored points in the third quarter for the Panthers. Northern Lehigh continued to press, but they just couldn’t pull ahead of Saucon. The score at the end of third quarter was 51-38 Panthers.
Midway through the fourth quarter saw a huge player substitution, with many young players relieving most of the seniors on the court. These young players not only gained experience, but really contributed to the game.
Sophomore Connor O’Donnell displayed his defensive skills, giving the Panthers momentum for most of the last quarter. Sophomore Sean Cyphers made a foul shot and a three-pointer in his first varsity game, keeping the Panthers in a large lead.
Cyphers said, “It felt great to get in a game and score in my first varsity game.” Brad Yeahl, Cole Gilloti, Zrinski, Smith and Snead also added to the score bringing the final score to 71-46 Panthers. Snead was the lead scorer in this game with 20 points.
Panthers Coach Matt Brown said the team needs one more league win to qualify for Districts and then they are playing for seeding.
The next game is Thursday at home against Bangor. The last time these two teams faced off, Bangor walked away the winner. Thursday gives Saucon an opportunity to show Bangor that Panthers only get better with each game they play.
