Baltimore Rundown: SFA's huge week, Edwards' career night, more

<p>This week's edition of the Baltimore Rundown will highlight three different teams as St. Frances completed a hellacious schedule unscathed, a senior guard in Baltimore County explodes for a career night, and a Baltimore City public school program begins their road to protecting their state championship in impressive fashion.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>St. Frances' big week</strong></h2>   <p>It's always hard to keep a team level-headed after a big win, especially when that victory comes against a program who one publication considered the No. 1 team in the country. That was the case with St. Frances after upsetting Archbishop Stepinac (NY) in Baltimore last weekend, but there was little-to-no time to savor the feeling as they looked toward the week head with grueling matchups against fellow BCL programs.</p>   <p>Monday night the Panthers traveled to Irvington to take on Mount St. Joseph in the 100th edition of the Battle of Baltimore. It took overtime to decide the victor and St. Frances was crowned as the final score read 70-66 in their favor. 2027 Terence Jones continues to put on a high-scoring junior campaign as we predicted and once again led with 22 points in this one while hitting key free-throws in the extra frame. 2026 Anthony Smith joined Jones with timely shot-making and would follow in the scoring column with 19 points as he continues to establish himself with his new team.</p>   <p>On Wednesday they'd play host to a scrappy, energetic Calvert Hall group and protect their home floor by winning 58-51. 2027 Chance McCoy had his first big game as a Panther since transferring from Edmondson-Westside as he accounted for a team-high 18 points.</p>   <p>Less than 48 hours after the win over the Cardinals, St. Frances would head to Severn to take on Archbishop Spalding in a sold out gymnasium. They began things with a punch in the mouth by way of a 15-0 run and would hold onto a double-digit lead for the remainder of the first half. Spalding made their run in the third quarter to cut it within two heading into the final eight minutes. The Panthers got off to a nice start once again, only for Spalding to respond, but it wasn't enough as Nick Myles' group sustained the surge and would hold on to win 70-67. 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2878470' first='Carter' last='Fisk'] was the high-scorer for the Panthers with 22 as the 6-foot-2 combo guard has been showing improvement in his ability to create for himself off the bounce as of late. McCoy was key to their quick start as he scored 11 of his 13 in the first quarter of action.</p>   <p>The week ended with their contest against Coolidge (DC) in the Capital City National Showcase event, which took place at Coolidge High School. They took the floor for their fourth game in six days, once again reigning victorious after fending off a physical Coolidge team with plenty of their fans in attendance. Jones was the high scorer with 25 as Fisk added support in 14 points and five dimes.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2954436' first='Gavin' last='Edwards']' career night</strong></h2>   <p>2026 Catonsville guard [player_tooltip player_id='2954436' first='Gavin' last='Edwards'] demanded my attention with a few events in the summer and fall as he showcased his scoring ability as a lead guard. The 6-foot-2 senior can shoot it with range, operate off the bounce effectively getting to his spots, and will gladly explode above the rim for rim-rocking finishes if he has a clear path. </p>   <p>The Comets are expected to be one of the top teams in Baltimore County this season and they started off their 2025-26 campaign with a statement win over New Town 75-37. Edwards outscored (yes, you read that correctly) the opposition himself as he posted an impressive stat line of 39 points, nine rebounds, eight assists, eight steals, and four blocks. Flirting with a quadruple-double, especially when it includes 39 points, earns you your own section of the weekly Baltimore Rundown. I wouldn't be surprised if Edwards has a similar performance to this one down the road.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>City makes a statement in opening win over private school</strong></h2>   <p>The Knights returned to the floor a year removed from claiming the Class 3A title led by Omarr Smith Jr. (New Mexico State). The biggest question with head coach Omarr Smith's group this season is how they'll replace the production left behind by his son. Well, so far so good as they won in resounding fashion over Gilman by a final score of 81-38 on Friday night. </p>   <p>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2926169' first='Tourean' last='Thompson'] will be a key addition in the backcourt and provide shooting from deep as well as some playmaking ability off the dribble. He led in this one with 20 points, four assists and four steals. 2026 Jayden Hargrove poses a similar game to Thompson in that he can space the floor and has proven to be lethal from the corners as a catch-and-shoot threat. He'd follow his fellow backcourt mate with 19 points and four steals. </p>   <p>City will begin league play this week with games against Digital Harbor on tonight and Dunbar on Wednesday. </p>

This week's edition of the Baltimore Rundown will highlight three different teams as St. Frances completed a hellacious schedule unscathed, a senior guard in Baltimore County explodes for a career night, and a Baltimore City public school program begins their road to protecting their state championship in impressive fashion.