Penn Wood’s girls basketball team narrowly defeated Perkiomen Valley before Wednesday’s District One 6A playoff opener at Spring-Ford, and the Patriots seemed up to the challenge of facing the undefeated  Rams.

After a slow start on offense, with neither team being able to score in the first two minutes of the game, Spring-Ford scored off of an Abbey Boyer jump shot. Once the Rams saw that shot go in they never looked back with a 12-0 run, getting crucial baskets from their reliable seniors Lucy Olsen and Emily Tiffan in a 67-36 victory. 

The Rams continued their dominance on the defensive side as well, forcing six Patriot turnovers in the first quarter. To cap off their impressive first quarter, Anna Azzara knocked down a deep 3-pointer as time expired to give the team a 25-4 lead at the end of the quarter. 

The impressive 3-point shooting made this game out of reach going into halftime as the Rams led 46-14. Olsen led the Rams with 18 points in the first half, and the Patriots were left searching for answers headed into the locker room. 

Unfortunately, the Patriots were unable to find those answers, but they did find some offensive success in the second half and outscored the Rams through their guards Lashanda Smith, and Ashley Cyrus. 

A major role in the Rams’ success was their dominance from beyond the arc, as they were able to sink 9-of-17 from 3-point distance, led by Boyer and Tiffan with three each. If the Rams are able to continue to shoot the ball the way they did tonight, they will be a very tough matchup in any potential upcoming postseason game.

Spring-Ford was led by Villanova commit Olsen’s team-high 24 points, Boyer’s 13, and Tiffan’s 11. Smith was able to score 21 points for the Patriots, but it was not enough to overcome the Rams’ high-powered offense. 

After Abington’s 68-56 win over Methacton, the Rams will now take on the eighth-seeded Galloping Ghosts on Saturday in the next round of the District One 6A Playoffs.