Harford Men’s Basketball Edges Howard, 91-88; Women Fall to Dragons, 76-51

From the HCC sports desk:

COLUMBIA, Md.—Since the New Year, the Harford men’s basketball team has been on a rollercoaster ride through the MDJUCO Conference standings. The Fighting Owls (12-7, 6-5 MDJUCO) started January off with a win against second-place Allegany, to enter into a tie for second in the standings, and have since seen themselves in ties for fifth, eight and seventh place. Harford’s 91-88 win over Howard on Wednesday night put the Owls into a three-way tie for seventh place with the end of the season rapidly approaching. The Fighting Owls women (5-14, 2-8 MDJUCO) did not fare as well, falling to the Dragons (5-9, 2-6 MDJUCO), 76-51.

The men’s win over the Dragons (6-10, 4-6 MDJUCO) puts Harford in a good position with just five conference games remaining before the MDJUCO Tournament, and only two of those five opponents have winning records. The Owls are vying for a top-eight seed and privilege of hosting an opening-round game.

Freshman JoJo Woodruff (Capitol Heights, Md./Wise) led Harford in the win over Howard with 22 points, while sophomore John Schwarz (Perry Hall, Md./Perry Hall/Mount St. Mary’s) added 17 and freshman Dumone Leatherwood (Landover, Md./Jericho Christian) totaled 11 as the Owls earned their third win in January. Kameron Crump led the Dragons with 31 points on the night.

The Harford women saw Howard build a 14-point, 35-21, advantage by the half and were outscored 41-30 in the second stanza on the way to the 76-51 final score. Sophomore Kiara Reeves (Aberdeen, Md./C. Milton Wright) led Harford with 17 points, while freshman Alanza Brown (Chester, Va./Thomas Dale) added 13.

The Fighting Owls men return to action on Saturday when they host Chesapeake for a 2:00 p.m. game, while both the men and women host Valley Forge Military in a doubleheader on Monday with the women tipping-off at 5:00 p.m. and the men following at 7:00 p.m.