The Archbishop Carroll Patriots fell to the Malvern Prep Friars, 65-48, Friday night in the boys basketball team’s home opener.
To kick off the game, the Patriots played with a strong pace, keeping things close against a large Malvern Prep squad. Although the Pats had the lead coming out of the first quarter, they were being dominated on the boards, a trend that would continue for the rest of the game.
Senior guard Ian Williams — the key to the Patriots game this season — shot the ball well in the first quarter, knocking down two triples and passing the ball effectively. Williams missed last season because of injury. The starting point guard will be the team’s leader this year.
The keys to Malvern Prep’s play Friday night were Nick Harken and Logan Chwastyk. Harken dominated the second quarter for the Friars, scoring from all around the court and putting up 10 points in the quarter. Pairing Harken with Chwastyk is something special. Chwastyk pulled down every missed shot and doubled Malvern’s overall opportunities.
“They’re both terrific players and terrific people that I’m really fortunate to get the chance to be their coach,” said Malvern head coach Paul Romanczuk.
The Pats trailed by double digits coming out of the half and the domination from the Friars continued. Malvern continued to snag boards and play at such a high pace. The Patriots had no answers. Carroll only scored eight points in Quarter Three and trailed by a score of 50-35 heading into the final frame.
While Malvern Prep seemed to take the foot off the gas in the fourth quarter, Carroll continued to pile on points, picking up a few three balls from center Drew Corrao and a handful of points from Yasir Turner. Turner ended with 10 points on the day and was one of the bright spots for the Patriots.
Coach Francis Bowe said there’s a lesson to take from a game like this.
“We told the guys in the locker room: we had a horrible practice yesterday, we weren’t locked in, we weren’t focused, and honestly that what happened there is a direct result of how we practiced yesterday,” Bowe said. “I think we can get better from it. This is called nonleague games for a reason.”
The contest was a homecoming of sorts for Malvern head coach Romanczuk, a Carroll Athletics Wall of Famer. Romanczuk coached the Patriots from 2003-2015, taking one year off in 2005 for medical leave. Romanczuk won 283 games as the head coach of the Pats, who appeared in two quarterfinals games, seven semi-finals games, and two championship games during his tenure. Romanczuk and his squad won the 3A state championship game in 2009, one of the most historic basketball years at Archbishop Carroll, during which both the boys and girls took home a state championship.
Romanczuk expressed just how much it meant to him to get back to Carroll.
“The basketball program — I have so many fond memories,” Said Romanczuk “It really means a lot to come back here.”
