LEWISTON — The Central Maine Community College women’s basketball team found a way to win Thursday night.

It didn’t come without a lot of searching in the final quarter.

CMCC watched New Hampshire Technical Institute trim the lead down to one point twice in the final quarter. The Lynx even had a chance at the go-ahead basket in the final minute, but the Mustangs managed to thwart the rally for a 60-55 win.

“We held them to 55 points, which is great,” CMCC coach Andrew Morong said. “I felt like they controlled the game and controlled the tempo. Give them credit, they had a great game plan and kept the game close. They had a shot at winning. We dug our heels in a little bit and found a way.”

Jenny Schlim hit a pair of baskets midway through the quarter to open the lead and Frankie Lally sank four free throws in the final seconds to seal the win for the Mustangs (6-3). Lally finished with 14 points while Nicole Hamblin added 11 and Schlim finished with 10.

“With a young team, you have to learn how to win,” Morong said. “We’ve lost some close games, and we’ve won some tough games down the stretch. That’s pivotal to us developing as a team because we only have two returning players playing right now. So we have nine new girls that are still learning. They’re still making the adjustment from high school to college. That comes with the maturation process.”

Alex Rowe and Macy Welch are the only two Mustangs that are back from last season.

Danielle Kimball led NHTI (5-2) with 15, including five 3’s. Jillian Gillman added 10.

The Lynx were down by five early in the fourth but a basket by Riselly Deoleo and free throws by Gillman cut the lead to 49-48. Schlim hit a 3 from the corner. After free throws by Hamblin, Schlim scored off an inbounds pass and the CMCC lead was up to 56-48.

“We were moving the ball better on offense during that time,” said Schlim, a freshman forward. “I was able to find some open looks. We always need someone to make some shots happen. Frankie at the end hit the biggest shots.”

CMCC held the Lynx without a basket for more than five minutes, but the Mustangs couldn’t build on the lead. When Shannon Hart sank two free throws and Deoleo scored on a drive, NHTI was within 56-52 with 2:28 left. A 3 by Kimball cut the lead to 56-55 with 1:28 remaining.

The Lynx forced numerous Mustang turnovers in the final minute but couldn’t cash in. CMCC played some tenacious defense down the stretch. NHTI had a look for the lead but Stephanie Winsor’s shot missed. CMCC got the rebound and Lally was fouled with nine seconds left. She sank both. Kimball missed a try at a 3, and Lally added two more free throws to seal it.

“Our defense was trying to keep talking and keep the bench in it emotionally on our side,” Schlim said. “So we kind of stayed in control the whole time. Even though they got close, we were in control the whole game. That’s what we tried to do on defense keep it loud and keep it intense.”

kmills@sunjournal.com

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