Durham Academy beats Voyager, 59-50
BY JOE JOHNSON DURHAM HERALD SUN
JJOHNSON@HERALDSUN.COM;919-419-6889
DURHAM — Durham Academy boys’ basketball coach Tim McKenna couldn’t remember a better start to a season than his Cavaliers are enjoying now as they improved to 6-0 with a 59-50 win over Voyager Academy on Tuesday night.
The Cavaliers picked up their third win against county competition as they’ve already beaten Durham School of the Arts and Riverside in the early going. It also stopped Voyager’s 21-game winning streak dating back to last season when the Vikings captured the 1-A state championship.
“It was a really good win against a really good team,” McKenna said. “Getting our sixth win is exciting. It’s been a while since we’ve had a start this good.”
On Tuesday night, Jorden Davis scored 21 points to lead Durham Academy’s offense. He also surpassed the 1,000-point plateau during the contest.
“It’s great and I have a lot of fun playing with my teammates,” Davis said. “Voyager came out really strong and we knew they were a good team. We had the energy in the fourth quarter and that’s what impacted the game the most.”
It was a tight game for the first three quarters.
Voyager held a 19-15 lead at the end of the first quarter. But at halftime, it was all knotted at 25-apiece. Voyager held a slim one-point lead, 43-42, at the end of the third period. But the fourth quarter belonged to the Cavaliers. They held Voyager without a field goal until the final second when Cody Johnson banked in a 3 at the buzzer. Until then, all four of Voyager’s points had come at the free-throw line.
“They have a lot of firepower in their backcourt and we gave them a lot of open looks early,” McKenna said. “I thought we did a better job contesting their opportunities to score later in the game.”
Jordan Love led Voyager with 14 points.
Voyager coach Mike Huff said the loss was frustrating but there was a lot for his team to learn going forward. The Vikings have a completely different look this season without 6-10 Jay Huff in the lineup. Mike Huff said he has made the adjustment but there are still a few hurdles the team has to cross.
“We were undefeated but I don’t feel like we’ve hit our stride,” Huff said. “It’s like we’re trying to learn to ride a bike and we’re still wobbling along. Once we learn how to ride it, we’re going to be pretty good. We’re just out of sync. We still have a lot of things to work on and, fortunately, it’s a long season and we’ve got time to get better.”
In the girls’ game, Durham Academy evened its record at 3-3 as the Cavaliers routed Voyager 60-22.
Nicole Riepl scored 18 and Izzy Strigel added 17 as Durham Academy jumped out to a 26-2 first-quarter lead. And by halftime it was 38-8. Midway through the third quarter the lead reached 40 points and the rest of the game was played with a running clock.
Mackenzie Allison scored 14 points to lead Voyager (0-5), which remained winless.
BOYS’ SUMMARY
DURHAM ACADEMY 59, VOYAGER 50
VOYAGER — Jordan Love 14, Jordan Beale 8, Blake Buchanan 8, Taliek Pratt 6, Haydn Lyons 5, Michael Boadu 4, Cody Johnson 3, Luke Goodman 2.
DURHAM ACADEMY — Jorden Davis 21, Nick Beischer 7, Charlie Mendys 8, Cole Sinclair 8, Caleb Vanderburg 6, Michael Savarino 5, Jack McCallie 2, Tyler Carpenter 2.
VOYAGER 19 6 18 7—50
DURHAM ACADEMY 15 10 17 17—59
3-Point goals—Voyager 5 (Pratt 2, Buchanan 1, Beale 1, Lyons 1). Durham Academy 2 (Savarino 1, Davis 1). Rebounds—Voyager 24 (Buchanan 7). Assists—Voyager 6 (Love 2, Buchanan 2).
Records—Voyager 4-1, Durham Academy 6-0.
GIRLS’ SUMMARY
DURHAM ACADEMY 60, VOYAGER 22
DURHAM ACADEMY — Claire Middleton 8, Nicole Riepl 18, Izzy Strigel 17, Imani Spence 8, Morgan Doyle 1, Erin Dilweg 4, Jenny Drury 2, Carter Lange 3.
VOYAGER — Mackenzie Allison 14, Deasia Parker 6, Essence Champion 2.
VOYAGER 2 6 5 9—22
DURHAM ACADEMY 26 12 12 10—60
Rebounds—Durham Academy leader: Middleton 7
Records—Voyager 0-5, Durham Academy
BY JOE JOHNSON DURHAM HERALD SUN
JJOHNSON@HERALDSUN.COM;919-419-6889
DURHAM — Durham Academy boys’ basketball coach Tim McKenna couldn’t remember a better start to a season than his Cavaliers are enjoying now as they improved to 6-0 with a 59-50 win over Voyager Academy on Tuesday night.
The Cavaliers picked up their third win against county competition as they’ve already beaten Durham School of the Arts and Riverside in the early going. It also stopped Voyager’s 21-game winning streak dating back to last season when the Vikings captured the 1-A state championship.
“It was a really good win against a really good team,” McKenna said. “Getting our sixth win is exciting. It’s been a while since we’ve had a start this good.”
On Tuesday night, Jorden Davis scored 21 points to lead Durham Academy’s offense. He also surpassed the 1,000-point plateau during the contest.
“It’s great and I have a lot of fun playing with my teammates,” Davis said. “Voyager came out really strong and we knew they were a good team. We had the energy in the fourth quarter and that’s what impacted the game the most.”
It was a tight game for the first three quarters.
Voyager held a 19-15 lead at the end of the first quarter. But at halftime, it was all knotted at 25-apiece. Voyager held a slim one-point lead, 43-42, at the end of the third period. But the fourth quarter belonged to the Cavaliers. They held Voyager without a field goal until the final second when Cody Johnson banked in a 3 at the buzzer. Until then, all four of Voyager’s points had come at the free-throw line.
“They have a lot of firepower in their backcourt and we gave them a lot of open looks early,” McKenna said. “I thought we did a better job contesting their opportunities to score later in the game.”
Jordan Love led Voyager with 14 points.
Voyager coach Mike Huff said the loss was frustrating but there was a lot for his team to learn going forward. The Vikings have a completely different look this season without 6-10 Jay Huff in the lineup. Mike Huff said he has made the adjustment but there are still a few hurdles the team has to cross.
“We were undefeated but I don’t feel like we’ve hit our stride,” Huff said. “It’s like we’re trying to learn to ride a bike and we’re still wobbling along. Once we learn how to ride it, we’re going to be pretty good. We’re just out of sync. We still have a lot of things to work on and, fortunately, it’s a long season and we’ve got time to get better.”
In the girls’ game, Durham Academy evened its record at 3-3 as the Cavaliers routed Voyager 60-22.
Nicole Riepl scored 18 and Izzy Strigel added 17 as Durham Academy jumped out to a 26-2 first-quarter lead. And by halftime it was 38-8. Midway through the third quarter the lead reached 40 points and the rest of the game was played with a running clock.
Mackenzie Allison scored 14 points to lead Voyager (0-5), which remained winless.
BOYS’ SUMMARY
DURHAM ACADEMY 59, VOYAGER 50
VOYAGER — Jordan Love 14, Jordan Beale 8, Blake Buchanan 8, Taliek Pratt 6, Haydn Lyons 5, Michael Boadu 4, Cody Johnson 3, Luke Goodman 2.
DURHAM ACADEMY — Jorden Davis 21, Nick Beischer 7, Charlie Mendys 8, Cole Sinclair 8, Caleb Vanderburg 6, Michael Savarino 5, Jack McCallie 2, Tyler Carpenter 2.
VOYAGER 19 6 18 7—50
DURHAM ACADEMY 15 10 17 17—59
3-Point goals—Voyager 5 (Pratt 2, Buchanan 1, Beale 1, Lyons 1). Durham Academy 2 (Savarino 1, Davis 1). Rebounds—Voyager 24 (Buchanan 7). Assists—Voyager 6 (Love 2, Buchanan 2).
Records—Voyager 4-1, Durham Academy 6-0.
GIRLS’ SUMMARY
DURHAM ACADEMY 60, VOYAGER 22
DURHAM ACADEMY — Claire Middleton 8, Nicole Riepl 18, Izzy Strigel 17, Imani Spence 8, Morgan Doyle 1, Erin Dilweg 4, Jenny Drury 2, Carter Lange 3.
VOYAGER — Mackenzie Allison 14, Deasia Parker 6, Essence Champion 2.
VOYAGER 2 6 5 9—22
DURHAM ACADEMY 26 12 12 10—60
Rebounds—Durham Academy leader: Middleton 7
Records—Voyager 0-5, Durham Academy
