Royals basketball splits with the Mallards
The Delmarva Christian boys’ basketball team dominated Worcester Prep 58-27 Dec. 15 to move to 3-1 on the season, while the Royals’ injury-ridden girls’ squad dropped to 2-4 with a 56-25 loss to the Mallards.
Three Delmarva Christian boys scored in double figures for Pat Woods’ team. Junior Noah Barbrow scored 20 to lead the purple and silver. Sophomore Asher Woods had his best game of the season, hitting five three-pointers for 15 points. Freshman point guard Aarian Tucker dished off eight assists, and he and Andrew Collins each snagged four steals. Joshua LoRusso came in off the bench and sparked the Royals with 10 points, including two from behind the three-point arc.
“It feels good to help the team,” said LoRusso. “It was a good win for us because everyone got to play, and I’m sure it will help our confidence down the road.”
“I think we ran really good offense tonight,” said Woods. “Our habits are really good, our concepts are really good, so they know where to move. I’m happy we stayed with it. Everyone got to play and the bench turned up the pressure when they were in there. It helped to get those guys real-time reps. It will help us in the long run.”
Worcester Prep’s win in the girls’ game improved its squad’s record to 5-0 on the season.
Four players hit for double figures for the Mallards. Sydney Mize led the Mallards with 20 points. Anisha Batra tallied 16, while Addi Walsh and Carolina Labin each hit for 10.
The Mallards outscored the Royals 28-8 in the first half, then kept it going in the second half, taking a 26-17 advantage to win 56-25. The Mallards had not defeated the Royals since 2019.
“It’s been nice to see our team grow since I was a freshman,” said Batra. “It feels good to win against Delmarva Christian, because they have won a few in a row.”
The Royals were missing three starters due to injury.
“We just want to make it through the Christmas break and get the injured girls back,” said Royals coach Frank Roach. “We had to pull up some JV players, and they haven’t had a lot of time to learn plays, but they are playing hard to help us. I’m looking for the seniors to help lead us through this time. We pray that our injured heal quickly.”
The Worcester girls fell to Holly Grove Christian School 28-27 Dec. 16. The Mallards had defeated the Eagles 40-15 Nov. 20.
Dan has worked for the Cape Gazette for more than 30 years as a photographer and reporter, covering high school sports and happenings around eastern Sussex County. He won a photography award from the National Newspaper Association, and numerous awards from the Maryland, Delaware, D.C. Press Association. A Delaware native, Dan graduated from Cape in 1972 and returned as a teacher and coach in the 1980s. He retired from the classroom in 2016. He was inducted into Cape High’s Legends Stadium in 2016. In his spare time, Dan enjoys spending time with his wife, two sons, grandchildren and dogs.
