The last time the girls basketball team played Bishop Blanchet, it was the second round of last year’s state tournament. The Spartans shot 33 percent from the field, committed 13 turnovers and were blown out 61-40.

Nothing new. The Spartans had never beaten Blanchet, losing five times by an average of 15 points.

On Saturday, hosting the Braves in their first meeting since last year’s debacle, the Spartans shot 27 percent, committed 18 turnovers – and lost by a single point in overtime, 41-40.

So much for stats. What they don’t show is the heart that the Spartans played with this time.

Against a big, active Blanchet team that lost only one player of note from last year’s runner-up state tournament team and is currently ranked No. 1 in the state, the Spartans refused to be intimidated.

Christine Schwager answered Blanchet’s initial hoop with a trey at 6:14 to give the Spartans a 3-2 edge. Alice Russell had two free throws two minutes later, but that was the extent of Spartan scoring as the quarter ended with the Braves up 10-5.

The Braves kept that five-point edge for much of the second quarter, but a Fab Rezayat trey at the buzzer sent the team into the locker room trailing just 18-16.

A pair of treys gave the Braves the game’s largest lead at 26-20 early in the third quarter, but the Spartans clawed back and took the lead 30-28 on Courtney Kimball’s layin.

Blanchet tied the score and the teams remained deadlocked at 30-30 as the fourth quarter began.

A Lee Maloney free throw gave the Spartans a 35-34 lead with two and a half minutes left, but Blanchet went up 36-35 after converting an airball into an offensive putback at 1:50. Rezayat’s free throw tied the score at 36-36 with 53 seconds remaining.

Both teams committed turnovers, then a final Blanchet shot missed badly and the game went into a three-minute overtime.

Blanchet took the lead at 38-36 on a third-chance shot at 1:20. But Schwager found Morgan Zajonc under the basket 15 seconds later.

A Bainbridge foul away from the ball resulted in two Blanchet free throws for a 40-38 lead with 25 seconds left.

Then came perhaps the game’s most crucial play. Rezayat drove the lane, went high into the air amid a forest of upraised Braves arms – one of which appeared to lightly brush her wrist – and the shot fell off to the side. The referees let the play stand.

Though a Spartan grabbed the missed shot, she was ruled to have stepped on the endline and the ball went over to Blanchet.

A quick foul resulted in another Blanchet free throw. The Spartans rushed the ball downcourt and Rezayat laid the ball into the basket for a 41-40 score with six seconds remaining.

But she picked up her fifth foul on the ensuing inbounds play. Blanchet – just eight of twenty from the charity stripe – missed both free throws, but had yet another offensive rebound and put up a shot, which also missed.

That consumed just enough time to keep the Spartans from getting off a final shot as they could only get the ball to midcourt.

“Blanchet has one of the best defenses in the state, and we’re still learning,” said coach Penny Gienger. “But the kids played hard.”

Rezayat was the only player in double figures for either team with 13 points. Schwager added nine, Alice Russell had six, Maloney five, Zajonc four, Kimball two and Haley Wiggins one.

The team travels to Ballard today and Lakeside on Friday, then hosts Ingraham on Saturday in the Spartans’ final game before winter break.

Blanchet JVs 47, Bainbridge JVs 28 – The Spartans took a 14-6 first quarter lead, but scored just two points in the second as the Braves went up 19-16 at intermission and pulled away after the half.

“My girls played their best basketball to this date in the first quarter, but they weren’t able to keep their focus for the whole game,” said coach Wendy Clark. Emily White led the team with 14 points.

Blanchet “C” 44, Bainbridge “C” 18 – The Spartans played mirror image 22-9 halves against the Braves, whom coach Kelly Beemer termed “the best team we’ve played so far this year.”

Amanda Szarzynski led the team with nine points, while Marietta Crockett added eight.