The Cardinal Huskies girls’ basketball team knew there would be tough times ahead. Cardinal remained winless when it lost 41-37 against Chagrin Valley Conference rival Orange in a crossover game at the Cavs Elite Varsity Girls Action Showcase last Thursday afternoon at Rocket Mortgage Field House in Cleveland.
“It was just silly mistakes,” said Coach Kim Domen. “Granted that is because we are a very young team that is freshmen-based. That is who plays. We did an okay job of boxing out but if we could have done a little bit better, we would have been fine. That is something we have to grow as a team.”
The Huskies (0-2, 0-0) led most the game but Orange hung around thanks to junior guard Rachel Oberster, who scored 17 points in the first three quarters. Leading 31-28 in the middle of the fourth period, Oberster keyed an 8-2 run, sparked by a transition lay-up and finding open shooters.
Oberster continued being the focal point of the Lions’ offense in the fourth period and attacked the paint but kicked the ball out to her teammates when Cardinal defenders swarmed. Junior guard Kynnade Bates hit an open shot off an assist by Oberster and junior guard Cameron Norton buried another open look, propelling the Lions ahead 34-33, their first lead of the game.
After senior forward/center Olivia Jackson converted a putback, stretching the Lions’ advantage to 36-33, the Huskies rallied when freshman guard Emily Pleva drained a 3-pointer from the top of the key, tying the score at 36-36.
Oberster countered by knocking down a 3-point shot from the right corner off an assist from Jackson, pushing the Lions in front 39-36 and converted on a pair of free throws to seal the victory.
“She’s a really good player,” acknowledged the first-year coach. “I kept telling them that she is left-handed so push her to the right. She will shoot and we just did not execute on defense.”
In addition to squandering a late lead, Cardinal’s defensive woes contributed to the Lions holding a 26-16 free throw advantage in the game, including shooting nine free throws in the final quarter.
“Some downfalls have been our silly mistakes like fouling,” Domen noted. “Had we not fouled so much maybe we would be in a different position, but you have to take what you get and roll with it. We rotated okay with having fouls, but had we not committed the little ticky-tack fouls we would have been in a better place.”
The Huskies also struggled on the glass and were outrebounded by a 45-34 margin.
“Again, those are the little things we have to do in order to succeed in the CVC Conference because going into the next game it is going to be rough and those are the things that we have to do,” Domen said.
Cardinal controlled the game in the first half, taking a 17-14 advantage into the break but the Lions were sparked by a 9-5 run in the third quarter, tying the score at 27-27. After taking a 31-28 lead at the beginning of the fourth period, the Huskies only shot four-of-14 for the rest of the game and could not hold off Orange.
Despite some mistakes, Domen acknowledged it was to be expected fielding a squad of eight freshmen and four sophomores. Cardinal’s youth can be attributed to this season being the first year the girls could field a varsity program in two years. The Huskies did not have a varsity squad last year because there were not enough players in the program.
“This is huge,” Domen said. “Not having a basketball program last year is devastating to the whole trajectory and that starts in recreation and in middle school then it comes up to high school so having this group of eight freshmen come is really huge and we have four sophomores that are new. They are still trying to get into the groove of things but having a varsity basketball program now does help.
Domen is familiar with the eight freshmen, having coached the same group last year when she served as the head coach of the Huskies’ eighth grade basketball team.
“Their determination and their fight to not give up is huge,” Domen said. “The other thing with this group is the togetherness. They will fight for each other, stick up for each other and they will always cheer for each other. It is just one of those things where the bond between this group is really cool.”
Following a home contest against CVC Valley Division rival Kirtland on Tuesday night, the Huskies will host conference rival Wickliffe on Friday evening in Middlefield at 6 p.m.
