FREEPORT

Freeport trailed at all three quarter breaks of Saturday night’s girls high school basketball game against rival Yarmouth, but the Falcons pushed hard in the final frame. Down 13 after three quarters, Taylor Rinaldi hit two straight treys to start the fourth, and sparked a 16-6 run for Freeport.

Rinaldi and company outscored the Clippers by nine to close the game, but came up just short after three free throws in the final minute by the road side. Yarmouth held on to win 51- 47, in a Western Maine Conference matchup.

“We didn’t play well out of the gate and dug ourselves into a hole,” Freeport coach Mike Hart said. “Against a team that’s competitive in a rivalry game, we didn’t make good cuts offensively. The kids weren’t really ready to play the inside game. Once we started getting the ball inside, it opened up outside, and that ’ s really the difference that I could see.”

Rinaldi led the way from behind the arc, hitting four 3- pointers, including one in the last three minutes that pulled Freeport within three points. The sophomore guard led all Falcons with 17 points. Senior Kayla Belanger set the pace with a trey to open the Freeport scoring at the start of the game, and hit another big long shot late en route to 10 points and nine boards.

After Yarmouth ( 5- 5) jumped out to a 9- 0 run to begin the third quarter, Freeport ( 6- 4) turned on the high pressure and began to smother a hot shooting night for the Clippers, who finished at 46- percent from the floor. Junior Cory Langenbach paced the visitors with 20 points and three treys.

“We were going to press them because we found that they were cracking under our press,” Rinaldi said. “ If we pressed harder in the first quarter, we think we would have come through and won the game.”

“They shot well from the line tonight,” Hart said of Yarmouth. “ They’re good moving the ball, they’re quick, and their guards are good. When they did break pressure, they were able to break plays in the full court.”

The Clippers hit 12-of-17 from the charity stripe, with two from Jessica Kirk to ice the game. Kirk tallied 12 points on five field goals, and Alison Clark chipped in with 11 on five three throws.

Freeport was 38 percent from the floor, but sloppy turnovers in the first half added up and set the Falcons back. Of their 18 total, 10 came in the first half, where they fell behind by six and five at the quarter breaks.

Senior 6- footer Jessie Wall helped open up an inside game for Freeport in the second quarter, scoring six points in the paint and grabbing a pair of rebounds. Yarmouth’s defense blocked the inside in the second half, though, opening up room for Rinaldi beyond the arc.

“ They adjusted to our plays getting the ball into the post, so we had to look to the outside shots,” Rinaldi said. “I usually look to shoot. Since I’m on the shorter side, that’s usually what I should be doing.”

“ We wanted to play a fastpaced game because the zone was stymieing us a little on offense,” said Hart . “ Rinaldi stretched that out really well there and hit some big shots. Kayla ( Belanger) hit some big shots. When we started hitting our shots, it set up the pressure, and I thought for a minute there we were going to come out with a win.”

Once they turned up the pressure, the Falcons forced 15 Clippers turnovers, but merely ran out of time in the fourth quarter.

“ We talked about putting the ball inside,” Hart said. “ We wanted to press. I underestimated our ability to corner them up and press them, and I would’ve done a little more of that. But I still feel like we were able to be successful at the end of the game with our pressure, and it’s something we need to get better at.”

Freeport finished 6-of-13 from the free- throw line and got six points from forward Megan Cormiee.

The Falcons will be in action again Tuesday at 7 p. m. when they host Old Orchard Beach.

Yarmouth 51, Freeport 47

Saturday, at Freeport High School

Yarmouth — 17 9 16 9 — 51
Freeport — 11 10 8 18 — 47

Yarmouth — Alison Clark 3-5-11, Cory Langenbach 7-3-20, Isabel Bates 0-0-0, Jessica Kirk 5-2- 12, Johanna Hattan 2-2-6, Claire Brady 0-0-0, Aizhan Gwynne 1-0-2, Clementine Blaschke 0-0- 0, Sarah Kirk. Totals — 18-12-51.

Freeport — Jessie Driscoll 1-0-2, Johanna Bogue Marlowe 0-0-0, Taylor Rinaldi 5-3-17, Regan Lynch, 1-2-4, Kayla Belanger 3-1-10, Jessie Wall 4-0-8, Megan Cormier 3-0-6. Totals — 17-6-47.

3-point field goals — (Y) Cory Langenbach 3; (F) Taylor Rinaldi 4, Kayla Belanger 3.

Records — Yarmouth 5-5, Freeport 6-4.

Up next for the Falcons — Tuesday at home against Old Orchard Beach, 7 p.m.