CARDINALS AVENGE TOURNAMENT LOSS TO HOWLAND

HOWLAND CENTER, OH – The Canfield Lady Cardinals looked to keep their hot start to the season going on the road at rival Howland, a place where they fell short in the Sectional Finals last season. It is safe to say that the Cards got their revenge on the Tigers as they did just the right amount to edge Howland 57-48. 

Canfield got rolling to start as 12 of their first 14 points came from three. It was a splendid night shooting from beyond the arc, overall, as they canned in 10 treys. 20+ point quarters have been no stranger to the Cardinals, either, as they picked up 26 first-quarter points to take a 26-13 advantage after one.

More sharp shooting helped Canfield build up a 34-17 lead with time winding down in the first half. Howland, on the other hand, had a shining star in Alyssa Massucci, as an 8-0 spurt by her helped the Tigers end the first half on a 13-3 run to only be down 37-30 intermission. Massucci was a force to be reckoned with in transition with many hard drives to the basket. She had a monstrous 18 first-half points and finished with a game-high 26. 

Despite many attempts by Howland to come back in the second half, including a 7-0 run after trailing 46-34 in the third, Canfield put the game away with their red-hot shooting. Cards senior Abby Muckleroy overcame some struggles in the first half as she led the second-half pushaway for Canfield, with some clutch threes to put the game on ice. She would lead the Cardinals with 16 points on the night. Free throw shooting also played a huge factor as the Cards went 5/6 from the charity stripe.

Canfield (11-1) will look to continue their dominant start to the season on Saturday when they travel to Chaney to take on the Cowgirls. This will be Canfield’s first non-conference matchup since December 28th. Howland (6-8) will look to snap a two-streak on Saturday when they travel down to Cardinal Mooney in a non-conference showdown. The Tigers beat the Cardinals last year at Howland 57-23.

YSN’s Noah Ricks got a chance to speak with Canfield coach Matt Reel following tonight’s victory. The full interview can be watched below.

*Contributed By YSN’s Noah Ricks