If the Catasauqua boys’ program is to get back to districts after a two-year layoff, they wanted to start the New Year and impending crammed Colonial league schedule on a high note.

For the most part, the Roughies did.

In a rescheduled game with Palmerton that was played Dec. 30, Catty held off the visiting blue Bombers in a 42-40 victory. They then picked up another win along the way in a 56-47 victory at Palisades Tuesday night.

With the pair of victories, the Roughies raised their overall record to 5-3. Isaiah Graves, the team’s leading scorer all season, again led the Roughies in both games with 25 and 15 points respectively.

The Roughies were in a scuffle in the second half against Palmerton as they scored just 13 points after halftime as opposed to 29 in the opening 16 minutes, and they were plagued all night long with their foul shooting. They shot a respectable nine for 12 in the first half, but they managed to sink just three of 12 attempts after halftime.

Head coach Eric Snyder believed his team might have a slight letdown against Palmerton, as the Roughies had eight days off from a 63-55 victory over Northern Lehigh Dec. 21. Conversely, Palmerton had played two games in a tournament a few days earlier.

“I expected that we might have some kind of a letdown,” said Snyder. “They (Palmerton) were fresh off a couple of games and they played like it. But we hung tough and it was a big win for us. It kept us above .500 and we could start the year off on a good note.”

The Roughies will have their mettle tested this week with other contests against Salisbury Thursday, Moravian Academy Saturday, and Bangor Monday.

“We’d like to get out of this stretch with a 2-2 record,” added Snyder. “I don’t know if we can matchup well against Salisbury and Bangor. They are both big and probably the best two teams in the league.”

With a few more wins, however, Snyder is confident his team can solidify its chances to gain a district berth. The Roughies are in Class 3A and four teams from District 11 will qualify. Catty presently has a better record than Palmerton and Northern Lehigh, who are also both in the same class. Both teams had a combined two wins between them beginning the week, and Catty already has wins over both.

“We feel like we have a good shot (at districts),” said Snyder. “We know we’ll have some challenges ahead, but we need to keep playing well as a team. There is a good chemistry on this team.”