Canfield gets it done against Harding

February 11, 2014 at 12:00a.m.

By Steve Wilaj

CANFIELD

It wasn’t the most exciting atmosphere. It wasn’t the prettiest performance from either team.

But in the end, Monday’s matchup between Canfield High and Warren Harding resulted in a 49-27 grind-out Cardinals victory at James W. Watkins Gymnasium.

And that’s all Canfield coach Pat Pavlansky could ask for.

“We’re just really proud of the girls on a Monday night — when the atmosphere’s not usually the best — because they just hung in there, listened and figured out what they needed to do,” Pavlansky said. “And we got it done.”

What the Cardinals (13-6) wanted to do was contain Raiders center Maya Bell, who caused problems early and finished with a game-high 18 points.

But eventually, a steady Canfield defense imposed its will, holding Harding (7-13) to single-digit scoring in each quarter.

“Maya is really good — probably the best post [player] we’ve seen all year,” Pavlansky said. “She gave us some trouble early on while we adjusted to what she could do, but we figured it out holding them to only 27 points.”

Harding shot just 28 percent (9 of 32) from the field and committed 16 turnovers.

“You can’t give a team like Canfield extra opportunities and they got a lot of early buckets off of our mistakes,” Raiders coach Frank Caputo said. “Then when they pressured us the way they did, we kind of got in a funk offensively.”

Canfield led 12-7 after one quarter, but stretched its lead to 26-14 at the break.

“We made some mental mistakes early, but we pulled through it, talked it out and everything fell into place,” Cardinals guard Ashley Kaleel said.

Kaleel, a sophomore, sparked Canfield’s offense early on, scoring all 10 of her points in the first quarter and knocking down two 3-pointers.

“When I made my first shot, it felt great,” she said. “I feel like it really started the tempo, picked up our other girls too and it kind of started a rally for us.”

Rachel Tinkey scored a team-high 11 points and Erin Risner added 10. Jamie Giambattista also scored nine points off the bench.

“That’s outstanding and we need that,” Pavlansky said of the balanced scoring. “They know Rachel’s one of the top scorers in the area — Risner just had 29 the other night — but we do have other people that can score.”

Pavlansky added he’s pleased the way his team is playing heading into the tournament after three more games this week. Canfield will play the winner of Austintown Fitch and Boardman.

“We know what’s coming up,” Kaleel said. “I think we’re really prepared.”