SOUTH PARIS — It seemed that every time the Windham girls’ basketball drew close Saturday afternoon, Tianna Sugars was there to squash the Eagles comeback hopes.
The senior forward was a force both offensively and defensively Saturday as Oxford Hills beat Windham 56-50 in a Class AA North girls’ basketball matchup.
Sugars finished with 17 points, including a number of timely points in the second half. She also made a number of key defensive plays and made something happen whenever the Vikings needed it.
“One thing about her that people don’t know is that she understands the game of basketball,” Oxford Hills coach Nate Pelletier said. “She does things that people don’t expect. She can dribble up the floor and people don’t expect that. She’s one of the best passers in the league. Obviously she can rebound and she hits free throws. She does all those things. At the start of the game, she got the ball three times in the post and scored. Her game has definitely gone to a lot higher level.”
In addition to her 17 points, Sugars had 16 rebounds and four blocks. One of her biggest rebounds came after a missed free throw late in the fourth. She got the ball back for the Vikings. That led to a pair of Erin Morton free throws and a 50-45 lead with 1:02 left.
“I just try to help on offense and defense as much as I can for my team,” Sugars said. “I have to step up my game for us to win.”
Morton led the Vikings (4-1) with 18 points, that included seven points in the fourth quarter. Five of those came from the foul line down the stretch. Jayden Colby also hit key free throws and finished with eight points.
“It came down to free throws in the end,” Pelletier said. “For a coach, that can be kind of nerve-wracking, but when the game goes like that and you have the right kids on the line, as a coach, I’m pretty happy.”
Windham (3-2) was led by Sadie Nelson with 18, while Mya Mannette added 13. The Eagles got behind early after Oxford Hills opened an 11-2 lead. Windham hit just one of its first 11 shots and finished 2-for-14 from the floor in the first. The Eagles were battling from behind the rest of the game, but thanks to some streaky shooting and 3’s from Nelson and Mannette, Windham was always within reach.
After being down by as many as 33-22 midway through the third, the Eagles rallied to within 37-33 after three. Nelson hit a 3 to end the quarter with seven points, giving Windham new life.
“We got up 13 and we felt like we were going to put them away,” Pelletier said. “Then they make a run and it’s back to a four-point game. Then we’re back up 11 and it’s back to two. I feel like that’s how our year is going to go. The games are going to be see-saw games like that.”
Early in the fourth, Sugars thwarted numerous Windham attempts to rally. She blocked a shot during an Eagles possession that would have trimmed the lead. She hit two free throws midway through the quarter to bump the lead back to nine. Jadah Adams scored to make it 47-36 with 4:29 left.
Windham kept rallying though. Mannette hit a 3 to spark a 9-0 run. Meghan Hoffses hit a jumper and after a Nelson rebound, Mannette scored on a drive to make it 47-45 with 1:28 left.
Morton was fouled on the Vikings next possession. She made the first but missed the second. Sugars grabbed the offensive rebound and maintained the possession. Morton was fouled again and sank both free throws for a 50-45 lead with 1:02 left. Windham got within three on two Makayla Watson free throws, but Sugars hit two from the line, and Morton added two more to pad the lead. The Vikings sank 14 free throws in the final quarter.
“These game are all going to be like 56-60,” Pelletier said of Class AA North, where a number of KVAC teams are reuniting with SMAA clubs they haven’t played in years. “We were able to make free throws and that’s what helped us win this game.”
The Vikings built the early lead with an aggressive attack. Oxford Hills pushed the ball off every change of possession . The Vikings were even assertive in the half court, taking the ball to the basket.
“We’ve been practicing trying to push the ball up and get the fast break points,” Sugars said. “We’ve been doing that a lot because we know we can be one of those teams.”
Adams, Morton and Anna Piirainen all scored in the first quarter, but Sugars was dominant in the post. The Vikings used her presence in the paint to spark the 15-4 lead in the first quarter.
“It felt good,” Sugars said. “It felt nice to make them.”
Windham got within 15-12 after six straight early in the second, but Oxford Hills answered with a drive from Colby and a fast break basket by Morton. Then Morton hit a free throw and Piirainen scored on a fast break as part of a 7-1 run that opened the lead back to nine. An Adams basket and a Sugars free throw made it 25-17 at the half.
The Vikings padded the lead early in the third with an Erin Eastman 3 and a jumper by Morton. Though Windham was able to chip away and close the gap, the Vikings did a nice job pressuring the Eagles shooters while Sugars patrolled the middle of the zone. Windham missed its first four shots in the third and hit just one of its first 11 in the fourth.
“In practice, coach always tells everybody that I have the paint and that we don’t have to worry and that we can get out on the shooters because I will control anything that happens inside,” Sugars said.
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