It was a bit ragged at times, but Mason Eastern comes out on top against Pentwater

Pentwater scored the first couple baskets and took an early lead on the Cardinals and took a 10-9 lead. But the Cardinals outscored the Falcons, 12-2 in the second period for a 21-12 lead at the half.

“We had some poor passing and were trying to force the ball a little bit early,” said Cardinals coach Jake Smith. “Then we had better ball movement, and we were getting to the correct spot. I thought our timing was a little bit better on our passes and we opened it up a little bit there. We blocked down on them a little bit more, pushing our zone out and making them get out of rhythm.”

Both teams scored four points in the third quarter, which left the Cardinals holding a 25-17 edge heading into the fourth quarter, during which the Cardinals outscored the Falcons, 10-4.

Lucy Shoup paced the Cardinals with 14 points and Janessa Alvesteffer finished with 12.

Jocelyn Richison scored 10 points to lead the Falcons.

“We rebounded strong,” Smith said. “Our rebounding was one of our keys tonight. We had 12 assists on 17 baskets, so we had quality passes.”

The Cardinals (5-4, 5-2) travels to Manistee Catholic on Wednesday.