Catasauqua head boys’ basketball coach Eric Snyder has been discovering how patience can truly be a virtue.

Through their first six games, the Rough Riders lost five of them, four by a combined total of 10 points. The Roughies had high expectations for the season with a veteran core back in the fold.

Since they dropped a 49-48 decision to Pleasant Valley Dec. 27, the Roughies have posted four lopsided victories by an average of 28 points in each game.

Monday night, Catty ended Lehighton’s nine-game winning streak with a convincing 69-40 victory, handing the Indians only their second defeat (12-2) of the season. The Roughies evened their mark at 6-6.

Frankie Pujols led the Roughies with a game-high 20 points, Reece Lopez had 16, and Hamaad Jenkins added 15. The Roughies opened up a relatively tight game in third quarter, holding a 48-36 advantage heading into the final stanza.

It was the Roughies’ second biggest offensive output, as they routed Palisades, 73-39 on Jan. 9.

“Pujols has been all over the floor,” said Snyder. “Jenkins has had a really good floor game, and Lopez has been hitting threes and has been shooting well.”

Snyder sees the start of the new year as a new beginning for his team.

“In our first three games this year, we had three impressive wins over Pen Argyl, Palisades, and Jim Thorpe,” said Snyder. “Against Jim Thorpe and Lehighton, we were able to get all the kids into the game, and we played some of our JV players, which was good.

“This was a big win for us over Lehighton, and they were really playing well. We have had a lot of balanced scoring, and we got that against Lehighton.”

Snyder is confident his team can carry its momentum this week, having Northern Lehigh (Tuesday) Moravian Academy (Thursday), and Kutztown (Saturday). The Roughies will have a few busy days down ahead.

He also cited the play of starters Matt Fotta and Jeremiah Cofie, along with Dylan Lorah, Caden Weaver, and Manny Bolmer and Aalini Nix off the bench.

“Fotta is getting into basketball shape from football, and is rebounding and blocking shots,” beamed Snyder. “Cofie has been a terror on the boards, and he has really improved his shooting off rebounds.

“Lorah has been an excellent outside shooter and Weaver has played tremendous defense. Bolmer brings energy and offense and Nix can give us instant offense as well.”

“It is like an NBA scheduling of six games in 10 days, and one of those days is a Sunday,” reflected Snyder. “The kids are playing with a lot of confidence right now and they believe in themselves if we still have an opportunity to get ourselves to, 500 and hopefully above 500 record in the next week.

“We want to stay in competition for the Colonial League playoffs, and right now we are ranked fourth in the district playoffs.”