FREDERICK — It wasn’t quite to the point of introductions being necessary among the starting five for the Skyline boys basketball team, but suffice it to say they certainly haven’t had much of an opportunity to develop into a cohesive unit this season.
With the Falcons having all their projected starters together for the first game this season, Skyline won for just the second time in its last 11 games.
SHS used stifling defense, made good use of its height advantage inside and made 16 free throws in the fourth quarter to upend host Frederick 62-51 on Friday night.
Skyline defeated Frederick for the first time in their last six meetings, dating back to 2008.
“It’s the first time all year — in 14 games — we’ve had our starting five on the floor,” said SHS coach Michael Peterson, whose team improved to 5-9 and 2-5 in the Tri-Valley League. “We’ve had one concussion, three games missed with flu, six games with an ACL, two games with a kid at the beginning of the year who was ineligible. We played 13 games with nine kids, and five of them were JV.
“I expected us to be solid. I don’t predict wins or losses, but when we’re full strength, we’re a solid basketball team. We can play with anyone. But we have to get healthy, and now that we’re healthy, at least it gives us a chance.”
With 6-5 Zach Anthony back after missing three games due to sickness, he and 6-6 Colton Dabney had Frederick (9-6, 4-3) back on its heels. The Warriors had little luck going inside, and they shot just 26.7 percent from the field for the game.
Despite not being fully recovered, Anthony finished with 13 points and 10 rebounds — Peterson called him “an absolute beast on the boards” — while Dabney added nine points, 10 boards and three blocks.
“It feels amazing,” Anthony said of getting back in the win column after losing nine of 10. “I was getting sick of losing. We just came together tonight and played pretty good.”
Skyline guard Luciano Quesada, returning to form following his knee injury, finished with a game-high 17 points, including 13 in the second half. Dustin Mandrell added 16 for the Falcons.
Skyline led almost all the way, but Frederick crept within a point at 37-36 on an Austin Rivera 3-pointer early in the fourth period. But the Falcons went on an 11-3 run to keep the Warriors at bay.
“They got one shot to our eight (to start the game) and yet the score was 0-0,” said Frederick coach Larry Frank, whose team dropped its second straight contest. “… We could have easily been up 10-0.
“The last third of the season we’ve struggled shooting the ball. It doesn’t matter whether it’s from the field or the free-throw line. The kids need to relax and play the game of basketball, and some of them are putting a little too much pressure on themselves for whatever reason. But this was a tough loss.”
With Frederick’s top two scorers for the season — Ryan Miller (six points) and Lucas Adams (five) — being held to a combined 11 points, Alex Therrien led the way for the Warriors with 15 points. He hit four 3-pointers on the night.
Next up, Skyline will be at Mead on Tuesday, while Frederick will host Windsor that same night.
Skyline 62, Frederick 51
At Frederick HS
SKYLINE (5-9, 2-5)
Dabney 3 3-8 9, Mandrell 5 3-4 16, Stuvel 2 0-3 5, Quesada 4 8-10 17, Anthony 5 3-4 13, Soriano 1 0-0 2, Lucero 0 0-0 0, Steakley 0 0-0 0. Totals 20 17-29 62.
FREDERICK (9-6, 4-3)
Adams 1 3-4 5, McGraw 0 0-0 0, Rivera 3 0-0 8, Therrien 5 1-2 15, Miller 1 4-6 6, Burgess 0 0-0 0, Broz 1 0-0 3, Wise 2 0-0 4, Harrison 0 1-2 1, Martinez 3 2-2 9, Gomez 0 0-0 0. Totals 16 11-16 51.
Score by quarters:
Skyline 11 13 11 27 — 62
Frederick 8 9 14 20 — 51
3-point field goals — Skyline (5): Mandrell 3, Stuvel, Quesada; Frederick (8): Therrien 4, Rivera 2, Martinez, Broz. Total fouls — Skyline 15, Frederick 22. Fouled out — Anthony. Technical fouls— Frederick bench, Quesada.
