Staff photo / Brian Yauger Harding junior Nadia McQueen (34) fends off Hubbard’s Aniyah McElroy as she drives to the paint during Friday’s game against the Eagles at Hubbard High School.

HUBBARD — Harding fended off a late push by Hubbard to remain undefeated on Friday, taking down the Eagles, 47-39.

Hubbard battled physically, forcing missed shots in the paint, but the Raiders and a 12-point outing by Nadia McQueen, secured those extra chances.

“We have to do a better job of boxing out and making sure that we secure the ball,” Raiders coach Frank Caputo said. “They did a great job down low tonight. That team was very physical. They did a really good job against us. We were very surprised at the half on how physical they played, so we had to step up to what they were doing.”

The Raiders were led by Trinity Taylor, who had 15 points. Ja’Leah Provitt added 10.

Harding is a junior-laden squad this season, with a starting five composed entirely of juniors. Factor in three seniors on the bench, and the Raiders have experience in spades.

That experience and leadership has paid off early this season, especially during Friday’s game where a younger team may not have been able to withstand Hubbard’s counterpunch.

“We have very good leadership with everybody this year. I talked about it before too,” Caputo said. “We have our captains doing a great job, but everybody’s really taking a role. Some JV kids are even stepping up and doing some things. I’m really, really happy leadership-wise where we’re at, and we’ve just got to continue to keep pushing.”

It doesn’t hurt that the Raiders have continuity as well.

“A lot of these girls started as freshmen and sophomores, so their experience and honestly, the way they come to practice prepared has really stepped up the tone for what we do,” Caputo said.

A hot start can sometimes lead to overexcitement, but the Raiders aren’t letting this good start get to them.

They’ve got goals, but they’re far ahead on the calendar.

Harding is focused on taking each day as it comes and building toward its goals.

“You always want to go undefeated, you always want to win the league, but we just want to keep getting better each game,” Caputo said. “Hopefully at the end of the year, we’re where we want to be.”

Hubbard (3-1) could not be reached for comment. They look to recover on Monday on the road against Garrettsville Garfield.

Harding moves to 4-0 with the victory. Its next game also comes on the road, with the Raiders traveling to Stark County to take on Massillon Washington on Wednesday.