TOPSHAM — Julie Petrie always knew Kayleigh Wagg could shoot, but Wagg’s career-high 32-point performance Friday against Edward Little was something the Mt. Ararat coach had never seen before from the senior forward.

“She was just a menace tonight,” Petrie said. “She was scoring inside, 3s, and she was just feeling it. So I said, ‘Let the big dog eat. Give it to Kay.'”

Wagg outscored Edward Little (4-1) on her own in the second half as Mt. Ararat (5-0) built on a six-point halftime lead and rolled to a 64-44 victory in a clash of undefeated Class A North girls basketball teams.

“The adrenaline is rushing,” Wagg said after the game. “I think our intensity really kept us going tonight. Our bench was really good. Anytime I made a shot, or anybody made a shot, it was really good, and the crowd was amazing.”

Along with her 26 second-half points, Wagg grabbed eight rebounds and dished out three assists. Senior forward Julianna Allen added nine points, eight rebounds and three assists, and sophomore guard Cali LeClair scored 10 points.

The Red Eddies and Eagles traded baskets early before Edward Little took the lead with a strong interior presence that forced missed shots down low and a fast-paced offense that moved the ball around.

EL sophomore forward Elizabeth Galway got 12 of her 17 points in the first half and was as strong a defender in the lane as she was a scorer.

Petrie thought her team was nervous early, but the Eagles eventually got Edward Little into foul trouble late in the second quarter.

Wagg, yet to sink a basket from the field, was the main beneficiary of the fouls. She started just 1 for 5 at the free-throw line, but closed out the half by making five of her next six attempts. She ended the night 11 of 17 from the line.

“I just told myself that I had to calm down,” Wagg said. “I mean, I’ve been in big games before. I know I can make my free throws, and Petrie kind of pulled me aside and just said, ‘Calm down. You got it.'”

Wagg’s shooting confidence had returned, and with her team holding a 26-20 advantage coming out of the break, she was ready to show it off. She started her 14-point third quarter with two catch-and-shoot 3-pointers, a reverse layup through traffic and a crafty post move.

Wagg scored or assisted on her team’s first nine points of the fourth quarter as Mt. Ararat continued to exploit spaces in the Red Eddies’ press defense.

“She was just getting anything she wanted,” Edward Little coach Frank Perry said. “And the foul trouble did hurt because we couldn’t really defend her like we wanted to. (We) got to be careful when our bigs are in foul trouble.”

Four seniors started for Mt. Ararat, while Edward Little had a freshman and two sophomores in the lineup. Perry noted that his team’s shot selection should have included more drives to the basket.

“We took some pretty good 3s, but we also took some bad 3s. We’ve got to fix that. So we’re working on it. We’re a young team. We’ve got some work to do.”

Mt. Ararat senior guards Jaelyn Jensen and Jenna Jensen contributed six and seven points, respectively, along with three steals each.

Junior guard Hope Fontaine scored 11 points for EL.