TIGERS WIN SEASON SERIES IN SECTIONAL FINAL
Contributed By YSN’s Noah Ricks
HOWLAND CENTER, OH – The Howland and Canfield girls split in the regular season, with a margin of victory of just 1.5 for both games. It was, however, a different feeling as both schools were meeting for the third time, both of them fighting for the right to go to Districts. The Tigers came out blazing with some outside shooting and took every rebound they could get as they upheld the Cardinals 55-38 in the Division 1 Sectional Final out in Howland.
The Tigers got off to a fast start when they went up 8-0 in the first, all thanks to threes from Kylie McClain and Alyssa Massucci. They had gotten Canfield right where they wanted them as they tried to avenge their 52-51 loss at home to the Cards back on February 5th. Canfield, though, had some tournament spirit in them as they put on a 16-8 from that point to tie the game up at 16-16. Howland, however, had a good response to the Canfield burst as they used a 7-2 run to end the half with a 23-18 advantage.
The Cards kept it close in the third period, with some good takes by senior Alyssa Dill and some important threes by Abby Muckleroy. The Tigers kept pushing, though, thanks to a dominating performance by young sophomore Alyssa Massucci, who finished the night with 18, with an impressive performance from downtown. She played a big role as Canfield did a good job shutting down leading scorer Alyssa Pompelia until the fourth quarter. Pompelia finished the night with 11.
The fourth quarter really changed the tempo of the game as Howland pushed out even more in front, with clutch free throws from players like McClain. Canfield was also caught in the foul bug in the final stanza. After not committing a single foul in the third period, they would end up committing six quick ones within just the first three minutes of the fourth. Howland then put up a very comfortable 17-point lead as the final buzzer sounded and the Tiger girls celebrated on the floor. They would cut down their net as they claimed their nineteenth sectional title in program history.
The Tigers will improve to 18-6 on the year as they win their first sectional championship since 2018. Second-year coach Aaron Pounds has had a magnificent turnaround after going 8-10 a year ago, considering COVID restrictions and first-year status. His team will now play in the Division 1 District Semifinals against Massillon Jackson on Tuesday night. That game is slated for a 7:30 P.M. tip down at Massillon Perry.
Canfield ends the season at 16-7 with the heartbreaking loss. This ends a three-year streak where they have gone to the district tournament. This is also only the fourth time in coach Matt Reel’s nine-year tenure where they have not won a sectional title and have failed to make the Round of 64.
You can watch exclusive coverage of the Howland team cutting down their own night following tonight’s sectional victory. The video will be down below.
