Germantown Friends forward Jessica Moore (right) prevents penetration by a Cristo Rey guard. (Photo by Tom Utescher)

By Tom Utescher

After posting a 32-13 Friends Schools League basketball victory over Academy of the New Church last Tuesday, the Germantown Friends girls upped their overall record to 7-9 on Friday evening by topping non-league guest Cristo Rey, 41-22.

Paced by double-digit output from eighth-grade forward Jessica Moore (13 points) and senior point guard Lilly Dupuis (11), the host Tigers built on a modest 5-0 first-quarter lead to arrive at a 21-3 advantage for halftime.

"In the last couple of weeks, there's been an improvement in the intensity of our practices," revealed first-year GFS head coach Mike Lintulahti. "That's carried over into the games, too."

In a Senior Day ceremony, Germantown Friends recognized the contributions of Dupuis and fellow 12th-grade guard Ajai DuBose.

"They've done a great job of setting the standard as we try to grow this program," Lintulahti remarked. "They've bought into the ideas the coaches are trying to get across, and their leadership on and off the court continues to grow. You can also see them continue to develop as players out on the floor, and I think seeing that is inspiring for our younger players."

A free throw by DeBose and a lay-up by Dupuis got the home side of the scoreboard started last Friday, and later a baseline jumper by Desiree Norwood (Moore's eighth-grade classmate) made it 5-0 for the change of periods.

In the second quarter Cristo Rey got on the board with a free throw by Joi Poole, but it came during a three-minute stretch when GFS marked down two field goals and two free throws for Moore and a three-pointer for Dupuis. The Tigers now led 14-1, and they stayed in control.

"I think our offense got going because we stepped up our defense, which is what happens a lot of the time in basketball," Coach Lintulahti said.

The visiting Lions recorded their first field goal with a lay-up in the middle of the period, but then GFS expanded its lead to 18 points by halftime, when Dupuis already had nine in the books.

The Lions only managed to score consecutive field goals once throughout the second half, and when that happened and GFS called time-out in the middle of the third quarter, the Tigers were still leading 24-9. They out-pointed Cristo Rey 9-2 for the rest of the period, which ended in a dramatic manner.

Bringing the ball up the floor for GFS in the final seconds, Moore got just a few steps over mid-court when she had to let go a buzzer-beater from the left wing. To the delight of the home crowd, the ball went through, and after the hosts began the concluding quarter ahead 33-11, they ruled the segment, 11-2, despite making use of their reserves and backing off on their scoring attempts in the final stages.

DeBose finished with six points and Norwood with four for the Tigers, with three points added by sophomore Gigi Guida. Juniors Corin Grady and Maya Keren and freshman Tsega Afessa had two points apeice, and sophomore Andy Regli added a free throw.