Appoquinimink’s Myles Cale scored 34 points as the Jaguars defeated Caravel 70-62 in DIAA playoff action Wednesday.

MIDDLETOWN – Appoquinimink’s Myles Cale told head coach Steve Wright that he was going to bring a different energy to the court for the DIAA Boys’ Basketball State Tournament.

In the Jaguars’ first round matchup against visiting Caravel Academy, Cale lived up to his promise as he scored 34 points to help Appoquinimink hold off the Buccaneers 70-62 Wednesday.

“His leadership. He said he was going to do things differently in the playoffs. He was going to take things to the next level, and he did that. That was a big step where we need to be on Friday,” Wright said.

Cale was the driving force behind the Jaguars’ dominant first quarter as he scored 17 points in the frame to help 12th-seeded Appoquinimink jump out to a 25-6 lead after eight minutes, which increased to 28-8 early in the second quarter.

Caravel, seeded No. 21, woke up at that point, and led by O’koye Parker’s 18 points in the second and third quarters, the Buccaneers (11-9) went on a 29-11 run to pull within two at 39-37 midway through the third quarter.

The Jaguars (13-7) regained their focus and closed the third on an 11-2 run to increase their lead to 50-37, and they held on from there as their lead never dropped below six points in the final frame.

Cale scored 10 points in the final quarter, and he credits his teammate for finding ways to get him the ball.

“My teammates just looked for me because they knew I was hot, so they kept getting me the ball. They fed me the ball, and I kept going,” Cale said.

Ky’ree Perkins had 15 points while Keith DeLoatch scored 12 for Appoquinimink, and Parker finished with 32 points for the Buccaneers.