Albany, NY - The Panthers hosted conference rival Word of Life on Wednesday evening on a night where the ACPHS SAAC committee sold walking tacos!
The women tipped off first at 5pm and right from the tip, it was all about defense. The Panthers held the Huskies scoreless until the final minute of the first quarter when they hit two free throws. In the second, the Huskies managed to score 10 more points, but the Panthers shot over 50% from the field to drop 23 in the period, led by freshman Adora Cho (Great Neck, NY) who had 9. Fellow freshmen Akosua Adu-Gymafi (Holden, MA) and Ava Gaspie (Mechanicville, NY) both had 6 points in the quarter to help give the Panthers a 35-12 halftime lead.
The second half was more of the same as the Panthers held the Huskies to 20% from the field. Cho would finish with another 21-piece while Gaspie and Adu-Gyamfi set career highs with 17 and 11 points, respectively. Alexis McCarthy (Green Island, NY) grabbed 9 boards while the team collectively had 14 steals and 7 blocks en route to a 66-30 victory.
Shortly after the conclusion of the women's game, the men tipped off around 7pm. Unlike the women, the men had a very slow start. Turnovers and fouls hurt them as they quickly found themselves losing 19-5 in the early minutes. With basically no shots falling, they decided to attack the paint and went on a 12-2 run to cut the lead down to 4 points. However, the Huskies answered with a 14-4 run of their own to bring the lead right back to where it was. The Huskies would enter halftime with a 12 point lead.
After the break, the Panthers made halftime adjustments and came out firing. In the first 8 minutes, they went on a 19-4 run to secure their first lead at 47-46. Over the next few minutes, they pushed that lead up to 8 points. They were able to hover around that lead until the final two minutes when they had a 73-66 lead. But then the fouls started piling up. And even worse, the Huskies hit three huge threes to retake the lead with 10 seconds left. The Panthers ultimately lost the game, 79-75.
Alex Carrillo (Akron, OH) and Logan Yohe (Delmar, NY) both finished with 16 points while Chase Tamashiro (Kane'ohe, HI) added 12 off the bench. Clarence Claiborne, Jr. (Petersburg, VA) and Jalin Williams (Winter Haven, FL) both grabbed 9 boards while Yohe blocked 2 shots.
The men's next game will be Friday night when they go to their neighbor Russell Sage College while the women's next game will be a home game on Saturday afternoon when they host Holyoke Community College.
How to follow the Panthers: For the latest information on ACPHS athletics, visit acphspanthers.com or check out the ACPHS athletics social media platforms on Instagram @ACPHSPanthers or X @ACPHSAthletics.
Written by Angelo Oddo.
