Pesky Cardinals refuse to go quietly in 67-55 setback to Good Counsel

Good Counsel took an early 26-20 lead during the first period, then held on to win against the Cardinals 67-55 on Wednesday.

Despite scoring a game-high 20 points during the first quarter, Ireton cooled off in the second period and entered the locker room trailing 37-29 by the half. The Falcons turned up the pressure in the third quarter, but never pushed too much distance from the Cardinals, who battled back to outscore the visitors 17-10 in the game’s final stanza.

Bishop Ireton’s Cece Leone had a game-high 19 points, all hard earned tallies in the “paint” against a bigger Falcon front line, while sharpshooter Ileana Gutierrez recorded 12 points, including a pair of threes and a perfect 4-4 from the charity stripe. Alex Stipano added 7, while Isabelle Kendall and Charlotte Sofield each had 4 for the redbirds. The Cardinals shot a respectable 14 for 19 from the free throw line, made 19 field goals, of which 3 were from beyond the arc.

Lindsey Pulliam broke away to lead Good Counsel’s offense with 15 points, including six during the first period. Three other Falcons scored in double figures, including Nicole Enabosi (14), Sara Woods with 13, and Stacey Koutris with 11. Also putting points on the board for Good Counsel were Amanda Allen (3 points), Halle Burgess (3) and Maya Riley (2).