IHF Women's Trophy: Nigeria beat Burkina Faso to maintain winning start
Nigeria’s Senior Women’s Handball team maintained their impressive start to the inaugural IHF Women’s Nations Trophy Africa Zone III with a commanding 33-25 victory over hosts Burkina Faso in Ouagadougou on Friday.
The Nigerian side, coached by Michael Taangahar, overcame a closely contested first half before pulling away after the break to secure their second consecutive victory in Group A.
Burkina Faso matched Nigeria’s intensity in the opening 30 minutes, but the visitors held a slender 14-13 advantage at half-time.
Nigeria returned for the second half with renewed purpose, stepping up both their attacking efficiency and defensive organisation to gradually establish control of the encounter.
The improved second-half performance saw the Nigerians finish strongly, eventually securing an eight-goal victory at the Palais des Sports de Ouaga 2000.
Sadiya Musa was Nigeria’s leading scorer with six goals, while Wuraola Nuhu, Kirman Haruna, Rachael Ovetuo, Daina Saaloo and Grace Ahaemefula each contributed four goals.
Balikisu Muhammed also delivered an influential performance, scoring four goals and earning the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award for her outstanding display.
The victory means Nigeria have now won both of their Group A matches after opening their campaign with an emphatic 39-18 victory over Ghana on Thursday.
With two wins from two games, Nigeria have put themselves in a strong position in the three-team group, where the top two sides will advance to the semi-finals.
The Nigerian team will now turn their attention to completing the group stage strongly as they continue their bid for the Zone III title.
Beyond regional glory, the tournament carries significant qualification rewards, with the eventual Zone III champions earning a place at the 2026 CAHB African Women’s Handball Championship as well as the Continental Phase of the IHF Women’s Trophy.
Nigeria’s back-to-back victories have therefore strengthened their hopes of progressing to the knockout stage and securing a pathway to the next level of continental and international competition.
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