Thursday night against Panther Valley, Lehighton was able to take the Panthers' best knockout punch late in the game and still come away with the win.

The Indians finished strong in the last four minutes of the game to pull out an important early-season 64-53 non-league victory."We did a good job of moving the ball on offense all night long," said Lehighton head coach Rich Oertner. "We were also focused on the defensive end, especially in the first half."The Tribe came out blazing on both sides of the ball in the first quarter, jumping out to a 16-6 advantage. Creating turnovers was key for Lehighton as it forced the Panthers into six turnovers, which was the theme for the Panther Valley offense throughout the first half.After withstanding a mini-run by the Panthers at the end of the first quarter and carrying a five-point lead into the second, the Indians dialed it up again. A three by Andre McDowell to open the quarter followed by a deuce from Damian Mele once again gave the Tribe a 10-point lead.Lehighton's stingy 3-2 zone did the trick in the second quarter, forcing the Panthers into six more turnovers in the frame. The Panthers miscues combined with some hot shooting helped the Indians to a 15-point lead at the half."Our game plan worked out well in that first half," said Oertner. "We weren't really creating much pressure, we were just taking away their best scoring options and it forced them into some turnovers."In the third quarter, the Indians hit their coldest stretch of the night, but two key triples by Addison Howland kept the Panthers at bay as Lehighton carried a 17-point lead into the final quarter.In the fourth quarter, things certainly got interesting.The Panthers closed within 14 after back-to-back Tristan Blasko lay-ups and continued to gain ground when PV point guard Rene Figueroa intercepted a pass in the back court and finished. Figueroa then hit two free throws on the ensuing Panthers' possession to cut the Lehighton advantage to ten points."I think we got tired and when you get tired sometimes your focus breaks down," said Oertner. "We turned the ball over for a stretch and we started chasing on defense and that opened some stuff up for them offensively."Credit has to go to them and to their kids for stepping up and making some big shots."Panther Valley would actually get within seven with 4:47 remaining after a Trey Turner triple. However, as quick as the Panthers run came, it went away just as fast.