Baltimore Rundown: No. 1 upset, big scoring performances and more

Every Monday, I'll be coming at you with a rundown article from what happened in the previous week having to do with Baltimore Metro area programs. As public schools await their first official games in December, all of the attention has been on the private school programs.   Let's get into the headlines.   St. Frances bounces back in a massive way   St. Frances has had one of the most challenging schedules early on this 2025-26 season and suffered its first loss to conference foe Mount Carmel last Tuesday. In a performance where 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2878470' first='Carter' last='Fisk'] and 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2975252' first='TJ' last='Jones'] accounted for the team's 44 of the total 49 points in the loss, much of the attention was focused on how they would bounce back. There wasn't much time to sulk as the No. 1 ranked high school program according to MaxPreps, Archbishop Stepinac, made their way to Baltimore on Saturday afternoon. Boasting a roster led by a pair of USC commits in Darius and Adonis Ratliff along with Jasiah Jervis (Michigan State commit), the Crusaders came into the game favorited heavily despite the travel.   That was music to St. Frances head coach Nick Myles' ears.   As the Panthers did last season, they'd go on to defeat Stepinac once again this year by a final score of 66-58 using a third quarter run of their own to establish a 10-point cushion heading into the final frame. Once again, the scoring attack was led by Jones' 21 points but this time another senior guard in Anthony Smith followed his lead with 19 points and nine rebounds of his own. There were some good spurts from 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1963385' first='Brian' last='McMahon'] as well in the form of catch-and-shoot three's in the first half that forced the Ratliff's to have to guard him away from the rim.   On the other end of the floor, St. Frances relied on their helter skelter defensive schemes to speed up the Stepinac offense and decision-making into passes across court that the Panthers used to jump the passing lanes and spark fast breaks.   It doesn't get any easier for the school on Chase Street as they'll head to Mount St. Joseph this evening and play in the game that's been known as the 'Battle of Baltimore' for the 100 meeting all-time between the two programs.   Mount St. Joseph preps for big week ahead   As mentioned above, the Gaels will face off against their conference rival St. Frances this evening in Irvington as they put their unblemished 7-0 record on the line. With St. Frances coming off upsetting the No. 1 ranked team in the country, they're riding a high that puts the hiccup at Mount Carmel to rest. These two programs are obviously very familiar with each other and both coaches know exactly what the other's game plan will be, which is why these matchups have been some of the best games we see all year in the Baltimore Metro area.   On Wednesday, Mount St. Joe will then host Archbishop Spalding for a 7pm tip. Currently 2-1, Spalding has one of the more talented rosters on paper that you'll find in the Baltimore/DMV area. their 2028 duo frontcourt of [player_tooltip player_id='2715192' first='Nash' last='Avery'] and Braxton Bogard have both put together flashes or games early this season to show why they are so highly regarded. Guard play from the likes of 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1782592' first='Kam' last='Carter'], 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1782656' first='TJ' last='Moultrie'] (Army commit), and others will be critical in escaping with an early season BCL/MIAA win for the Cavs.   On the Gaels' side, 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2252277' first='BJ' last='Ranson'] (St. Joe's commit) has been on a scoring onslaught as expected. The senior shooting guard recently hung 31 on John Carroll in a double-overtime classic. 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='2546067' first='Aaron' last='Early Jr.'] found his groove in the offensive face-off as well as he finished with 24 points and needs to be a player that head coach Pat Clatchey needs to be consistent in order to make a real run at conference championships.   If St. Frances and Spalding wasn't enough for a big week, Mount St. Joe will then travel to Glenelg Country on Friday for a 6pm tip. The Dragons get their season started tonight against Rosedale Christian, but we'll be able to get a true feel for where they stand with this test. 2026 Drew Green (Brown commit) and 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1588137' first='Donavan' last='Marshburn'] lead the charge for head coach Garrett O'Donnell.   Quick-hitting headlines   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Many of the public schools in Baltimore city and county tip off their seasons this Friday. As the results begin to roll in on that front, they'll be incorporated in this weekly rundown as well.</li> </ul>   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1782586' first='Aidan' last='Able'] (UMBC commit) scored a season-high 42 points despite the double-overtime loss to MSJ and had a strong showing in their holiday event showing at Heritage in the Hoop State </li> </ul>   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Mount Carmel split their games with a 1-1 record down at Mayhem on Military this weekend as they lost a close one to DeMatha on Saturday, but bounced back with a win over St. Andrew's Episcopal. 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='2242055' first='Ralfs' last='Rudusans'] (Lehigh commit) had a nice showing throughout and won game MVP honors in Sunday's win with 16 points. 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2454529' first='Junior' last='Mancho'] also produced at a high clip this weekend as he tied Rudusans' 16 in the victory. In the win over St. Frances earlier this week, it was 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1782668' first='Tristen' last='Wilson'] (Holy Cross commit), Mancho and 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='2364682' first='Kiyen' last='Alexander'] who were instrumental in the effort.</li> </ul>   Games to watch:   Monday 12/1:   St. Frances @ Mount St. Joseph 7pm   Archbishop Spalding @ Calvert Hall 6pm   Wednesday 12/3:   Archbishop Spalding @ Mount St. Joseph 7pm   Friday 12/5   Mount St. Joseph @ Glenelg Country 6pm   St. Frances @ Archbishop Spalding 7pm   Calvert Hall @ St. Vincent Pallotti 7pm   Saturday 12/6   St. Frances @ Calvin Coolidge (DC) 3:30 PM- Capital City National Showcase

Every Monday, I'll be coming at you with a rundown article from what happened in the previous week having to do with Baltimore Metro area programs. As public schools await their first official games in December, all of the attention has been on the private school programs.