LANGHORNE, PA- The Cairn Highlanders men's basketball team opened their 2018-19 season Friday night, hosting the Shoremen of Washington College (MD).  In a spirited, back-and-forth affair, the Highlanders fell just short, dropping the contest by a final score of 86-76.
 
The Highlanders enter this season with playoff expectations, returning the entire squad from just one year ago, adding a healthy Jeremiah Harris and Julian Collazo, and boasting a deep freshman class.  Cairn showed some of the rust that comes with incorporating so many new pieces, playing inconsistent basketball and trailing by as many as seven points ten minutes into the action.  The Highlanders struggled to find their mark from beyond the arc, relying on Harris and Jordan Koczman's midrange ability, as well as Malachi Hall's all-around play to climb back into the contest.  The Highlanders trailed by 3 at the half after Hall raced past the Shoremen defense and finished an acrobatic layup to beat the buzzer.
 
The second half followed a similar pattern to the first as Cairn came out a bit lackluster, conceding multiple second chance buckets, while also struggling to control the ball or convert from the charity stripe.  The Shoremen stretched the lead as far as 15 points in the second half, coming up with a clutch basket to keep the Highlanders and the Cairn Crazies at bay when each potential comeback arose.  The Highlanders mounted a comeback over the last three minutes, utilizing stifling pressure to force Washington College (MD) into numerous turnovers- however, when the final buzzer rang, the Highlanders fell to 0-1 with the ten point loss.
 
Cairn will settle into their roster over the next couple weeks with the next chance coming this Tuesday when the Highlanders travel to York College (NY) for another non-conference matchup.