Tamaqua had to figure a way to fend off a young Blue Mountain girls’ basketball team in an early season matchup of potential Schuylkill League Division I contenders Wednesday.

Kolbe Robb and Sam Plasha both found a way to come up with huge plays down the stretch for the Blue Raiders, helping their team stay the course to pull off a thrilling 53-45 victory over the Eagles in overtime.

Blue Mountain seemed to have the momentum in its corner after a third quarter rally breaking free from a 24-24 halftime tie, turning to Ruby Henninger, Kayla Keck and Hailey Place to disrupt the Tamaqua defense.

Keck and Henninger both flung in triples, and Place added a deuce to zip out to a 33-27 lead with 45 ticks on the clock in the quarter. However, Kendle Miller’s trey right before the horn sounded to end the third left the Raiders with a good feeling, trailing 33-30.

Yet, the Eagles weren’t on bended knee just yet. The visitors kept their poise, and went in front 41-37 on a terrific play from Keck, who missed a trey from the arc, and hustled to the rim for a putback with four minutes to play.

That didn’t seem to bring the Raiders to a standstill, as there was Plasha driving down the lane, letting loose with a nifty, clutch basket, before Robb found a way to come up with a steal without fouling. Seconds later, Leah Black, the 5-7 forward, got a nifty assist from Lauren Ligenza for a bucket to tie it at 41-41 with 1:10 to play in regulation.

“I just felt very confident that I could make that basket,” Plasha said of her runner down the lane that enabled her team to trail, 41-39. “We practice very hard, and it was a shot that I feel good about taking.”

Robb, a veteran of these battles, lives for the moment.

“Our motto is tough together, so we had to stay composed,” Robb said.

Tamaqua nearly pulled off the win on an inbounds play with seven seconds on the clock. The Raiders ran a cross over using a screen to set up their sensational sophomore Ligenza. It was an in-again-out-again shot that rolled around the rim, as Ligenza was double teamed, and just missed getting the winning bucket to fall.

Raiders’ coach Erika Davis just smiled afterward when asked about the play.

“That was pretty cool,” Davis said, knowing full well that it was perfectly executed, save for the basket.

In the overtime, Blue Mountain dealt with foul issues itself, as two players departed with the game still unsettled. Rising 5-9 sophomore Mila Feagle, who scored 16 points, including four triples, to torch Tamaqua’s defense early and often, left after her fifth foul with 2:06 to play, trailing 45-42.

Robb hit the back end of a foul shot, with 1:54 remaining. When Blue Mountain turned it over seconds later on a Robb steal, Tamaqua started to take control.

“We’ve got a lot of poise on this team, we made some mistakes, granted, but we know how to win, and that’s important as we go forward,” Davis said. “Blue Mountain did a great job. Our kids responded the way they’re capable, and we’ll take this win.”

To be sure, Davis’ kids were responding in the affirmative. Ligenza got a great assist from Plasha, but plenty of plaudits go to freshman Millie Black, sister of Leah, who somehow made a terrific play off the glass for a huge rebound to sustain the play. Ligenza’s basket came at the 1:01 mark of overtime, and Robb hit a foul shot before Miller added the icing on the cake with two more foul conversions.

AT THE HEAD… Ligenza had a terrific overall game, scoring a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Robb had five steals, and Plasha five assists. Miller had a standout game with 12 points. Fleagle was superb with her 16 points. Teammates Camryon Campbell and Makalya Keck each added nine.

MOVING FORWARD… Blue Mountain will have a say when the teams meet late in the season. The Eagles have a horde of hustle in them, and learning how to win comes with age.

RAIDERS KNOW HOW… Tamaqua’s veterans came up big down the stretch. Robb, Ligenza, Miller and Leah Black all picked up the pieces when things seemed to be crumbling. They kept their heads about them.

BLUE MOUNTAIN

Henninger 1-0-0-3, Fleagle 6-0-0-16, Canfield 1-0-0-2, Place 2-1-2-3, Peel 1-0-2-2, Campbell 4-1-2-9, Fishburn 0-0-0-0, Keck 2-3-4-8, Nunemacher 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 17-5-10-45

TAMAQUA

Robb 3-2-4-8, M. Black 1-0-0-2, Scott 0-0-0-0, Plasha 2-0-0-4, Ligenza 8-4-9-20, Miller 4-2-2-12, L. Black 2-3-4-7. TOTALS: 20-11-19-53

Blue Mt. 10 14 8 9 4 0 – 45

Tamaqua 14 10 6 11 12 - 53

Three-pointers: Blue Mountain - Henninger, Fleagle 4, Keck. Tamaqua - Miller 2.

Records: Tamaqua (5-1, 3-1). Blue Mountain (4-2, 2-3).