Hawked! Howell wears down Mustangs.

     The Northville Boys struggled in their final tune-up before next week's District Tournament, losing to the Howell Hawks 55-48 in front of an unusually sparse crowd this evening.  It was a big night for activities in town with the hockey team facing a big district game against Catholic Central and the Pom Pon banquet, both which contributed to the small student turnout at the Corral.  Clearly the Stangs missed their loyal supporters and were a step behind all evening.
     Northville took their only lead of the game when Andrew Meacham hit a bucket late in the 1st quarter to make it 10-9.  The Mustangs took a 12-11 lead into the 2nd quarter, but Howell scored early in the period and held the lead all the way to the final buzzer.  They led 29-25 at half, and 43-38 after three, before fighting off the inevitable Mustang late push to ice it at the charity stripe.
     Meacham led all scorers with 21 while Andrew Stevens contributed 8 before going down with an injury in the final minutes.  The Mustangs were without Senior Captain Joe Hewlett tonight.  We hope to have him back in action net week.  Howell got balanced scoring and was effective from inside and outside tonight.
    It was a tough night for Northville all around.  The JV team also took a tough loss despite a tremendous late game rush that featured a couple of dream 3's from sophomore Leo Keys.  It wasn't quite enough though as the Hawks hung on for a 3 point victory.  The Mustang Hockey team was in a bad spot, down 4-0 to Catholic Central at press time.  The Freshman hoopers were the lone bright spot on the night, coming out with another win in a tremendous season.  Coach Sean Dicken took it in stride, "just trying to get the guys ready to play at the next level," he said with a smile.
     Tonight marked the final games for the JV and Freshmen.  Next action for the varsity will be Monday night at 5:00 in Canton.  Our opening round opponent is rival Novi.  If the Mustangs can get past the Wildcats, they will square off for the third time with the Division Champ Salem Rocks in what promises to be a classic matchup off great teams.  Get there early on Monday to secure a great seat or the tournament action.  Go Mustangs!