AUGUSTA — Not much separated Augusta and St. Patrick Monday night in the first game of the boy-girl doubleheader as the two schools helped raise money for cancer research in their annual “Hoops for Hope” game.
They even needed an extra four minutes to determine a winner.
In the end, it was Alexis Shields’ free throw with 1.6 seconds left in overtime that gave the Lady Panthers a 55-54 victory over the Lady Saints.
The game featured 12 ties and 11 lead changes, no team leading by more than five points throughout.
After a slow starting first quarter in which the two combined for just 10 points, shots started to fall in the second quarter starting with a Shields’ 3-pointer to get the Lady Panthers within two at 9-7. The Lady Saints held the lead throughout the majority of the first half, but a 6-2 Augusta run to end the half gave them a 19-18 lead by the break.
The two would then go back-and-forth in the third, changing leads four times and no team leading by more than three. A Justina Klee layup gave the Lady Saints a 27-25 edge, but the Lady Panthers closed with the final four points of the quarter to give Augusta a 29-27 lead after three.
Trailing 33-29, the Lady Saints mounted a 9-2 run to take a 38-35 lead with less than four minutes to play. A free throw contest broke out from there as 13 free throws were attempted in the final four minutes, the Lady Saints capitalizing by hitting five of their final six attempts, the last two coming from Libby Gallenstein to knot the game up at 44-all with 21 seconds left.
Augusta would then miss two golden opportunities to win it in regulation, the last a Hannah Arthur attempt that rolled off the rim as time expired.
To overtime they’d go.
Caroline McKay got the Lady Saints off to a good start with a 3-pointer, helping the Lady Saints keep the lead throughout the extra frame, adding two free throws with less than 20 seconds left to give St. Patrick a 54-52 lead.
Nicole Arthur would match McKay on the other end with two free throws of her own, tying the game at 54-all with 9.2 seconds to play.
The Lady Saints had a chance to win it with a Libby Gallenstein shot, but it rattled off the rim and in the act of grabbing the rebound, Shields was fouled with 1.6 seconds remaining.
After missing the first, Shields sank the second, St. Patrick’s desperation heave falling short at the buzzer, giving the Lady Panthers their second win on the year, improving them to 2-7. Augusta will now get 10 days off until they travel to Villa Madonna for their Invitational Tournament starting on December 27 with Henry County.
Shields ended with seven points and a team-high 11 rebounds. Nicole Arthur scored a game-high 21 points, Hannah Arthur adding nine and Madison Kelsch eight.
St. Patrick was paced by Klee with 18 points and 18 rebounds, followed by Gallenstein with 12 points, McKay with 10 and Allison Hughes with nine. The loss dropped the Lady Saints to 3-3 and return home on Wednesday to face Fleming County.
LADY PANTHERS 55, LADY SAINTS 54 (OT)
ST. PATRICK—6-12-9-17-10—54
AUGUSTA—4-15-10-15-11—55
Scoring:
St. Patrick (54) — Klee 18, Gallenstein 12, C. McKay 10, Hughes 9, Faust 3, E. McKay 2
Augusta (55) — N. Arthur 21, H. Arthur 9, Kelsch 8, Shields 7, Harper 6, Darnell 4
3-Pointers Made: St. Patrick 2, Augusta 1
Free Throws: St. Patrick 22/32, Augusta 20/39
Rebounds: St. Patrick 49 (Klee 18), Augusta 41 (Shields 11)
Turnovers: St. Patrick 17, Augusta 17
Records: St. Patrick 3-3, Augusta 2-7
