Canfield holds off Salem 32-26 to win Division II district title

STREETSBORO, Ohio – Canfield entered Saturday’s Division II district final with just a single blemish on its record this year. It just so happened that their opponent Saturday night was the one who gave them that loss on December 21st.

Two months after suffering their only defeat, Canfield got revenge with a 42-36 win over Salem to advance to the regional semifinals in Barberton, where they will play Marlington on Tuesday, February 28th at 6 p.m.

“It feels really good to beat Salem,” junior Camie Dill said.

And Dill had a big part in the reason the Cardinals were celebrating Saturday night.

With Canfield leading by one and just about 1:30 left, Canfield was inbounding under their own defensive basket. A steal by Salem made it look like the Quakers were going to take the lead. But after a missed layup, Kate Sahil came up with a Canfield rebound and was able to get a pass to Dill.

Dill dribbled down the floor, assessed the defense, went from right to left at the top of the key and started to drive. As she drove the lane, she zigzagged back to the right and went up for a layup. She was fouled as the ball went through the hoop. She made the free throw to make it 30-26 with 1:28 left.

“I just got the ball and they kind of backed off me a little bit,” Dill said. “The free throws were mental because I missed two earlier.”

Before she grabbed the crucial rebound, it was Sahil who had given the Cardinals a lead when she knocked down a pair of free throws with 2:27 remaining after Salem had taken a 26-25 lead just a little over a minute earlier.

Free throws were key for Canfield, as the Cardinals hit six of their final seven down the stretch to close out the game.

“We have had times this year when we haven’t been able to do that,” Canfield head coach Matt Reel said. “We stepped up and made them when they counted.”

Canfield led 18-10 at the half, but Salem came out of the locker room ready to go, especially senior Abbie Davidson.

In the third quarter alone, Davidson scored 12 of her game-high 16 points and had four steals. She also had an assist on the only basket of the quarter she didn’t make. When the third quarter ended, the teams were tied 24-24.

But Canfield used an 8-2 advantage in the final eight minutes to pull out the win.

“They came out and they made a run like we knew they would,” Reel said. “The biggest thing is we withstood their run and we maintained our poise.”

Jenna Triveri led the Cardinals with 11 points, while Sahil had eight.

As for this being a revenge game? The coach understood his players wanted this one, but also didn’t care who they were playing.

“It’s a district final, we’re thrilled to be in a district final,” Reel said. “The fact that it’s Salem, the fact they beat us, they played better than us that night. I think our girls wanted them again. We just wanted to go 1-0 no matter who it was.”