With the help of an explosive second half, the Port Allegany girls basketball team earned its first win of the season, beating Bradford 47-26 in a comeback victory on the road.

Early in the game, Bradford held its own with the help of stellar defense and Kalie Dixon. Running a 2-3 zone with fluid rotations, the Lady Owls kept Port at bay, forcing their shooters into uncomfortable shots without the ability to drive inside. Forcing misses, the Lady Owls capitalized on opportunities, with Dixon cleaning the glass and their guards running the fast break.

With the score tied at seven, the Lady Gators initiated a full court press, scrambling the Lady Owls into a panic that resulted in unforced turnovers. Going into the second quarter, the Lady Gators held a 10-9 lead.

“(Our offense) was pretty ugly (early,)” said Port Allegany head coach Jamie Evens. “First game out of the gate, we expected some jitters.”

In the second quarter, Dixon continued to bail out the Lady Owls with rebound after rebound. Battling under the boards, Dixon came away with numerous second-chance point opportunities while the Lady Owls continued to stifle Port’s offense with perimeter rotation and collapsing help in the paint.

The Lady Owls got their largest lead of the game after a banked-in 3-point shot from Alyssa Johnson put them up by four. Entering the break, the Lady Owls were up, 18-16.

Bursting out of the half, the Lady Gators found some offensive momentum from their shooters, while their reinstated full-court-press stunted any advance from the Lady Owls. Starting with a 3-pointer from Ella Moses, Port tied the game before going on a five-point run from consecutive turnovers from the Lady Owls.

“I told them at halftime, we were hurting ourselves (in the first half.) It wasn’t anything Bradford was doing. (We had) too many turnovers, too many poor shots. Defenesivly we weren’t in the right position,” said Evens. “We had a little more focus in the second half, a little more comfort, and things flowed a little better.”

While Bradford kept in the game for the first few minutes, eventually coming within three of the lead, the brick-wall press gassed the Lady Owls’ guards and picked off passes, allowing Port to score 19 points and run the scoreboard 34-25 going in to the fourth.

“We played a good three quarters and then we (collapsed.) It’s mental not physical,” said Bradford head coach Marty Bechelli. “We were a half a second (late) on every pass. Or we’re not moving any more. We’re working on it every day in practice, we’re just trying to get better every day.”

In the final quarter, the game was already sealed. Tired and without depth, the Lady Owls defense could not handle the constant motion and ball movement from Port, who scored with ease and ran down the clock with every possession. On offense, Bradford scored only one point in the fourth while allowing 13. With time ticking away and with both team’s reserves off the bench, Port claimed a 47-26 victory.

“We have high expectations for ourselves this year, so we have to come into every game ready from the tip. I don’t think we were mentally quite ready today,” said Evens. “We’ll get those things sorted out. It’s one step in the process.”

Dixon was the only double-digit scorer for the Lady Owls, finishing with 12 points, followed by Kenzie Taylor with eight points. For the Lady Gators, Evin Stauffer and Brynn Evens led the offensive charge with 13 points each.

Bradford (26) Dixon 4 3-6 12, Taylor 3 2-2 8, Persichini 1 1-2 4, Johnson 1 0-0 2. Totals: 9 6-10 26 Port Allegany 10 16 34 47 Bradford 9 18 25 36

Three-point goals: Port 6 (Evens 2, Dowell 2, Moses, Stauffer), Bradford 2 (Dixon, Persichini); Total fouls: Port 20, Bradford 18; fouled out:

JV: Port won 22-14