Zach Engle, Penns Valley boys’ basketball down Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy

Penns Valley center Zach Engle probably has a few inches on you.

And if you challenge him in the paint, he’s going to use every bit of his 6-foot-7 frame.

That’s how Wednesday night went down at the Rob and Alice Thomas Student Life Center.

In a 55-41 loss, Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy (2-2) tried to body up Engle and the Rams (5-0) in the paint — gain positioning, create contact, get to the free-throw line, something.

The Wolves received little in return for their effort.

Instead, Engle maneuvered the lane effectively. He tallied a game-high 15 points on 7 of 10 shooting from field, while adding four blocks on the other end.

Engle did what he set out to do.

“Force the ball inside, be strong with it, and take it right to them in the paint,” Engle said. “(SJCA) has some size. We wanted to utilize our size to neutralize it.”

The Wolves do have some height, especially in their leading scorer. SJCA forward Stephen Beattie, who combined for 49 points in the first two games of the season, stands at 6-foot-3, and does well to navigate his way on the block.

SJCA’s commitment to that was evident early. Specifically, the Wolves honed in on hitting Penns Valley with backdoor cuts along the baseline.

The Rams were ready.

After watching SJCA on tape, Penns Valley coach Terry Glunt knew Beattie, who managed just seven points, liked getting to the rim via the baseline.

“We just thought we’d get there a little early,” Glunt said.

That’s what Engle and his teammates did, swarming to cut the avenue off.

With that not an option — and the Rams’ zone defense stifling the perimeter and clogging the low block — SJCA’s offense struggled.

“There’s not really space to operate,” Wolves coach Richard Ciambotti said. “(Engle’s) just so big and takes up so much room...It gave us trouble.”

The defense and subsequent transition offense clicked early for Penns Valley, and gave the Rams a decent cushion at halftime. Glunt’s group led 28-15 at the break.

The Wolves hadn’t threatened too much offensively, but they were still hanging around.

But as the third quarter started, that feeling ceased pretty quickly. Penns Valley started the period on a 10-2 run, fueled by three field goals by Engle.

“When they extended their pressure, we capitalized against it,” Glunt said, “and took it to the bucket.”

Penns Valley guards Ben Alexander and Logan Pearce contributed eight and nine points, respectively. Junior lefty Keith Butts also chipped in 10, highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers to end the first quarter and start the second.

So it wasn’t all on Engle’s shoulders. But both Engle’s production and size was hard to ignore.

“(My height) makes it a lot easier on me,” Engle said.

That much was clear against the Wolves.

This story was originally published December 16, 2015 at 10:45 PM with the headline "Zach Engle, Penns Valley boys’ basketball down Saint Joseph’s Catholic Academy."