Two freshmen help EF pull out win over Yough

By Dean Dellamalva Jr.

MVI Sports

In the aftermath of a three-week shutdown of high school basketball, teams might prefer to lean on experienced and returning players rather than younger players getting their feet wet in the world of high school hoops. 

Elizabeth Forward and Yough chose to rely on three freshmen who garnered most of the attention in Friday’s Section 3-4A opener. 

Led by a trusty veteran and a pair of first-year playmakers, Elizabeth Forward used a strong fourth quarter effort to claim a 58-48 win over the visiting Cougars. 

Zach Boyd led the Warriors (1-0, 1-0) with 17 points, while freshmen Vernon Settles (14) and Charlie Meehlieb (13) also notched double digits for the hosts.

The Cougars’ Terek Crosby, also a freshman, led all scorers with 21 points while Gamal Marballie, who missed some practice this week with an illness, picked up 13. Marballie is now seven points shy of 1,000 for his career.

While the newbies were certainly center stage for both teams, EF’s duo of Settles and Meehlieb showed they were ready for the bright lights of varsity.

“(Meehlieb) was phenomenal tonight,” Elizabeth Forward coach Matt Loftis said. “He’s been doing those things in practice and it’s one of those things that you don’t know how it is going to translate to the varsity level as a freshman. He showed up tonight; he was big on the glass and made some critical finishes in the paint. He was definitely a difference maker.”

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