Monday, February 25, 2013
No. 16 Collingswood hung with No. 1 Haddonfield for a half, but couldn't keep pace in the second half.
With less than 30 seconds left and his team down double digits, first-year Collingswood High School boys basketball head coach Patrick Dorney had his players pressing on defense, asking them to exert maximum effort even when it was clear the game was lost. Dorney knew that with the type of performance his Panthers gave against a heavily favored Haddonfield squad, their last moments on the court this season deserved to be hard-fought. No. 16 Collingswood went toe-to-toe with No. 1 Haddonfield for more than two quarters before sliding late in a 63-45 loss in the first round of the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 2 playoffs Monday night. Collingswood trailed just 22-19 at halftime, but the Bulldawgs pulled away, winning the third quarter, 23-12. …
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Sophomore Jeffrey Valentine scored 15 points in his first game since switching from guard to forward, and plans to make the most of his opportunity.
Sophomore Jeffery Valentine played well enough at the guard position to earn extended playing time on the floor for the Collingswood High School boysbasketball team. But with two seniors and sophomore standout Jordan Wallace entrenched as the starting guards, there was little room for Valentine to stay in his natural position. So first-year head coach Patrick Dorney got creative, and moved Valentine—who is listed at 6 feet, 1 inch—to the power forward position. Valentine may not look like a prototypical power forward, but he played like one Tuesday night, scoring a team-high 15 points in the Panthers’ 48-43 loss to Haddon Township. Valentine was most productive in the first quarter, calling for the ball often while posting up. He scored …
Monday, October 8, 2012
Sophomore quarterback Jordan Wallace is hoping for big things in the second half of the Panthers' season.
As a first-year starting varsity quarterback, Collingswood High School sophomore Jordan Wallace has at times had that wide-eyed look to him on the field this season. As Wallace gets more reps under center, however, he's really starting to see things. The Panthers spent the bye week cleaning up an offense that has sputtered through four games tallying a 1-3 record. Head coach Jack McConnell said part of the early struggles can be linked to an inexperienced offensive line that has left added pressure on his young quarterback. As the line continues to come together, he believes Wallace’s play will start to blossom. “He’s starting to see his receivers a little better,” McConnell said. “We are struggling a little bit with our pass protection, …
Friday, September 7, 2012
Just 3-6 a year ago, the Collingswood High School football program is hoping to build itself a contender in 2012.
Prior to winning an Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling this summer, Winslow Township graduate Jordan Burroughs was highlighted in a commercial for CF Athletic that spawned the tagline “embrace the grind.” It caught on both locally and nationally and is certain to appear on the backs of T-shirts for many years to come. At Collingswood High School, football coach John McConnell has no problem admitting he adopted the Olympic gold medalist's line. He just hopes his players have bought into the message. “One of the things we are preaching is to embrace the grind,” McConnell said. “We have to plug at it and keep working hard and keep getting better. That was our main goal during the offseason, to keep getting better and better.” …
