Germantown Academy starts fast, beats Lawrenceville School to get to 4-0
WHITEMARSH >> Jerry Griffen-Batchler was a vital example of Germantown Academy’s versatility.
Thrust into playing running back when Lacey Snowden left with an injury, Griffen-Batchler, a wide receiver turned runner, gained 62 yards on nine carries and scored a touchdown to make sure the Patriot engine kept humming in a 49-33 victory over Lawrenceville School (N.J.) Saturday.
“Our team is just that flexible so we can do that,” Griffen-Batchler said. “It’s nothing I can’t handle. The coaches trust me to go back at running back, make big plays. Lacey went down so I had to step up. We drove all the way down with our running game and scored.”
The Patriots jumped out to a 28-0 lead and survived a hectic second half to improve to 4-0. GA was rolling early, scoring touchdowns on each of its first four possessions.
“We were clicking early on,” Griffen-Batchler said. “Our offense clicks. We’re just good on that side of the ball. We just need to work on things defensively and hope we can get better before the Inter-Ac comes.”
FAST START
Snowden’s three touchdown runs — 8, 34, three yards — pushed the Patriots to a quick 21-0 lead in just over three minutes.
Closing in on a running clock, GA scored again before the end of the quarter, when Hans Lillis reached the end zone on a 30-yard pass play from quarterback Jordan Longino.
The Big Red (1-3), powered by Jacob Fenton’s three touchdown runs, closed the gap, but Longino threw two more touchdown passes, including a nifty flip on the run to Lillis, and Griffen-Batchler scored his TD to keep the Pats in control.
“We gotta get better on defense, practice harder,” Griffen-Batchler said. “We gotta focus up when coach tells us to do something. We gotta keep pushing because every week, we’re getting better. These games are setting us up for the InterAC so we can go out there and win the league.”
GOING FORWARD
The Patriots look to get healthier over the coming weeks, getting possibly Snowden and starter Trae Vance back into the mix at running back.
“We’re where we wanna be, except for some injuries,” Pats coach Matt Dence said. “We got some guys back. And my hope is that we’re firing on all cylinders once we get to the Inter-Ac. I think it’s a winnable (non-league) game against Hatboro-Horsham (next week) but they’re probably scratching for their season right now.
“They’re not off to the start they wanted but they have a heck of a coaching staff over there. (Mark Schmidt) is gonna prepare those guys and I think it’ll be a lot of fun. It’ll be fun to play on Friday night and then go into the next week for (league foe) Malvern. It’s a great last test.”
