Tigers outlast Falcon girls in OT

JAY-- The action between Mountain Valley and Jay remained close in a girls' basketball game as an extra session was necessary to decide things at the spacious Tigerdome.

The Falcons' main threat was Ayla Allen who scored 27 points and had 11 rebounds. However, Jay surged ahead in overtime to pull out a 57-55 win against Mountain Valley.

Mountain Valley had taken a lead on a basket by Allen with 16 seconds left in regulation. But it was short lived because the Falcons didn’t get back on defense and it proved costly. Beth Moore scored an uncontested layup to tie the score at 46-all to extend the contest an extra four minutes.

“We got into a pressure situation,” said MV coach Rich Allen, regarding having to play in overtime.

“(Jay coach) Chris (Bessey) does a good job with them and we had players on the floor who hadn’t experienced pressure like that when handling the ball.”

Jay immediately established control as Moore (12 points) drained a three pointer, and following a MV turnover, she scored a driving basket. The Falcons were forced to play catch-up and were shutout until

Chrissy Briggs scored with 2:35 left. The Tigers froze the ball and MV committed two fouls, with Alexis Blodgett (27 points, six rebounds) making four free throws.

“Once we got the lead, we just needed to control the ball,” said Bessey. Allen scored from the lane to trail 57-52 with 1:01 left to play. Allen fouled out and the teams traded turnovers.

Makyla White (10 points) made a trey at the buzzer. MV had fell behind by eight points early and trailed 16-14 at halftime.

The Falcons made some adjustments in the third quarter and pulled within one point. Allen scored with 5:23 left, Lindsey Gallant stole the ball and went coast to coast. McKenzie Paterson scored on an assist by Breana Roberts (six points) and Allen buried a three pointer.

"Ayla had a great game,” said coach Allen, who scored 18 points in the second half and in overtime. “It was tough having her foul out, but we had hurt ourselves with (15) turnovers in the first half.’’

“This was our third straight overtime game,” said Bessey. “We had lost to Dirigo and Livermore Falls.”

Jay outshot the Falcons 28 to 8 from the free throw line.