Methacton boys rout Cheltenham to win District 1 6A championship

If you were looking for the dominant team in southeastern Pennsylvania this season, you could’ve absolutely made an argument it was Methacton.

Do the Warriors have the talent of Roman Catholic or Westtown? Maybe not.

But when you’re racking up 25 wins in 27 games entering the night and rolling through district playoffs with a league title in hand, you’re clearly doing something right.

And No. 1 seed Methacton just kept the good going Saturday at the Liacouras Center as it secured its first District 1 Class 6A title in school history, cruising past third-seeded Cheltenham, 73-48. The Warriors dominated throughout, jumping out to a 12-4 advantage in the opening minutes, and from there the lead was never in doubt.

“We kept the same game plan,” senior center Jeff Woodward said. “We want to control the pace, we want to play our way and we just want to limit down on them offensively.”

All those things came to fruition and then some against the Panthers. Senior Erik Timko had it clicking from the start, hitting his first seven shots en route to a game-high 27 points.

And once the Warriors opened things up from distance, it was time for the 6-foot-9 Woodward to take over. The Colgate signee scored 13 of his 20 points in the opening half and finished the night with 12 rebounds and four blocks.

“The combination of [me inside] with outside shooting is what makes us dangerous,” Woodward said. “That [shooting] forces other teams to decide — they either want to pinch down on me and leave shooters open or just give our shooters a lot of freedom.”

Even with a 43-21 lead at the break, there was never any real letup from Methacton. Although Woodward thought the Warriors could’ve really put things to bed at the start of the third, Methacton still led by 28 after three and was up 30 in the early minutes of the fourth quarter.

“When you realize [the lead’s in] the upper 20s and you start pulling some of the starters out, you realize how much they’ve dreamed of things like this,” Methacton coach Jeff Derstine said. “They earned it.”

But the road doesn’t end with a District 1 crown. The Warriors begin their quest for a PIAA Class 6A state title Saturday when they play District 3’s No. 6 seed, Harrisburg.

And Derstine hopes that when his kids return to practice Monday, they’ll recognize all they’ve accomplished: 23 wins in their last 24 games, not to mention three different titles — regular season, league playoffs and districts — with one more in their sights.

“It’s a Saturday night,” Derstine said. “Let’s enjoy it.”

Methacton: 19 24 16 14 -- 73

Cheltenham: 7 14 10 17 -- 48

M: Timko 27, Woodward 20, Hargrove 9, Byrne 7, Kropp 6, Eberly 3, Merola 1

C: McGlone 11, Coleman 10, Moore 8, Scott 5, Hawkins 4, Dearry 3, Payne 3, Andino 2, Emfinger 2