OPENING NIGHT W I N

FREE THROW PRESSURE. JUNIOR CALEB HEUCHAN WALKS UP TO TAKE A FREE THROW SHOT WHILE THE OPPOSING TEAM AND JUNIOR SAWYER STONE WAIT FOR THE REBOUND. THE NUMEROUS FREE THROWS CAUSED BY FOULS WERE A BIG FACTOR IN ALLOWING MACLAY TO COME AWAY VICTORIOUS.

HANDS UP. SENIOR JAQUAY RANDOLPH AND JUNIOR BLAISE WALLACE DEFEND NORTH FLORIDA CHRISTIAN’S OUT OF BOUNDS PASS. POSSESSION OF THE BALL ALTERNATED FREQUENTLY BETWEEN THE TWO TEAMS AS THE MARAUDERS AND EAGLES FOUGHT INTENSELY.

Boys Varsity Basketball Defeats North Florida Christian In Season Opener

BY JACLYN SUMMERS

On a chilly Dec. 2 night at North Florida Christian (NFC), the Maclay Marauders played the NFC Eagles in a boys varsity basketball game. The game stayed close in score throughout the night, but the Marauders defeated the Eagles in the end, securing their first win of the season. The ending score concluded 52-45 at the boys’ first away game.

“The game is just so beautiful, and I love it so much, so it’s just so easy for me to go out there and give it my all,” junior Blaise Wallace said.

At the beginning of the game, the Marauders scored their first point right off the bat. The boys kept scoring on the Eagles until a Marauder fouled an NFC player. The Eagles were able to have a shot at two free throws, but ended up making only one of the shots. This left the score 9-1 in the first few minutes with the Marauders in the lead. In a quick turn of events, the Eagles began to continuously drive the ball down the court and put some points up on the scoreboard for their team. Wallace stood out in the first half, and was able to dunk a few times on Eagle players in response. When the first half was over, the Eagles had taken the lead with a close score of 20-19.

“We all trusted each other and passed the ball around,” senior Jaquay Randolph said. “We played good defense, and followed up on each other. [We] just connected throughout the whole game.”

When the halftime break was over, the boys got back on the court. An intensity could be felt on both sides as the cheers of the crowd echoed around the gym. There were two, eight minute quarters left, leaving no time to spare for each team with the score so close. Junior Michael Grant was a big help to his teammates in the third quarter as he secured and passed the ball around. Throughout this quarter, the score went back-and-forth between the two teams. The Marauders would score, but the Eagles would gain the ball right back and run down the court to score points of their own. Wallace went right back to dunking on the Eagles this half, putting several points up for the Marauders.

“I feel it was good and we got a lot of work to do,” Head Coach Eugene Granger said. “It was a great start, and we won the game.”

In the final quarter of the game, the score was nail-bitingly close. With the Eagles fouling Maclay numerous times, the Marauders had many free throw opportunities throughout the quarter, giving them a bit of a leg-up and allowing several free chances at the net to score. In the end, Randolph stood out by shooting a few free throws and getting the ball close to the net for his team to score. With the Marauders keeping the intensity high until the night was over, Maclay got their first win of the season against NFC with a final score of 52-45.

Suwannee Shut Out

VARSITY BOYS SOCCER DEFEATS SUWANNEE 2-0

BY EVAN NGUYEN

Spectators bundled up to cheer on boys varsity soccer as they battled the Suwannee Bulldogs on Dec. 2 at Frank Shaw Field. The Marauders won the game with a score of 2-0 after originally tying to the Bulldogs earlier in the season.

“We’ve worked all week on defensive shape and stepping to the ball and developing a culture, and tonight we performed very well against a team that we tied to at the beginning of the year,” Head Coach Andy Warner said. “We took two steps forward today, and I’m very pleased with the performance and the attitude of the team.”

The first half started off with senior Ryan Daunt scoring the first goal after a header from striker RJ Hosay. Daunt then followed up with another goal assisted by midfielder Tucker Hicks off of a free kick, leaving Maclay up by two. The Maclay boys made numerous attempts at the net, but only two were able to make it in.

“We played more as a team in the first half,” Hosay said. “This allowed us to have more shots on goal which allowed us to win the game.”

Suwannee played a very aggressive game, but Maclay had a lockdown defense that shut them out. One crucial part of the defense was senior Eli Paddack, who came in as a new goalkeeper this year due to an injury of the previous goalie, senior Colin Willett. The chemistry between the back four defensive players and Paddack allowed Maclay to have a huge advantage.

“We played a lot more aggressive, a lot more physical and we started on the front foot,” sophomore Defensive Midfielder Aiden Meritt said. “During the game, we made a lot of silly mistakes, which let them hang with us.”

This year Maclay has a younger team than last year, with freshman Colin Edwards, freshman Zac Scovotto and freshman Henry Fernandez being on the team. So far, Maclay has gone 5-2-1 this season, winning five, tying one. They lost to Chiles and Lincoln. Maclay’s next game is on Dec. 3 against Florida State University High School at their stadium.