PORTLAND — Freeport took advantage of 21 trips to the free-throw line in the second half, connecting on 14 and forcing overtime, eventually pulling away for a 49-42 victory over Cape Elizabeth in Thursday’s girls Class B South high school basketball semifinal at Cross Insurance Arena.

The win puts Freeport in its second regional final in as many years. The third-seeded Falcons will face top seed Gray-New Gloucester in the final on Saturday at 1 p.m. The Patriots easily defeated Freeport twice during the regular season.

“It’s great for the team to be back in the finals again,” Freeport first-year coach Seth Farrington said. “I told these girls afterwards to enjoy it, you never know if you’re going to make it back.”

Freeport made 21-of-30 free throws for the game, while Cape was 7-for-12. Freeport held the advantage in rebounds, 29-17.

“It’s a hard environment to shoot in, so getting to the rim and picking up fouls and shooting free throws is just a high percentage shot for us,” Freeport’s Caroline Smith said, who finished with a game-high 23 points.

Thursday’s win for the Falcons did not come easy. Playing Cape — who beat No. 2 Oak Hill, 34-26 in Tuesday’s quarterfinal match — for the second time this season, a three-point victory for Freeport on Jan. 15 (33-30), Farrington knew it was going to be a tough battle against the Western Maine Conference foe.

“I know you can look and see we lost only four games, but our conference is so tough, and I think it prepared us for games like this,” Farrington said.

The Capers (9-11) scored seven of the game’s first 12 points, holding slim two-point lead after eight minutes of play. The Falcons continued their cold shooting in the second quarter, falling down by five points at the break behind Isabel Berman’s seven points for Cape. The low-scoring start was a result of each team working their half-court offense while both defenses forced a combined 15 first-half turnovers.

After carrying the 22-17 lead into the third quarter, the Capers extended their lead to seven following three Freeport turnovers on three consecutive trips down the court, with a pair of Brooke Harvey free throws making for a 24-17 contest.

The Falcons responded with a 7-0 run, sparked by Catriona Gould and Smith’s shooting from the charity stripe to tie the game at 24. It was the first time either team had put together a run of four or more points up to that point.

Freeport had a pair of opportunities to claim the lead, but missed free throws made for a 26-26 deadlock heading to the fourth. Cape made just one field goal in the third.

“There seemed to be a lid on the hoop,” Capers coach Christine Casterella said. “The balls went right around the rim and out.”

The Falcons grabbed their first lead since the early minutes of the game to open the fourth off a Rachel Wall free throw, but the sophomore missed her next three attempts in the frame, preventing the Falcons to pull ahead.

Harvey banged a pair of treys and the senior’s coast-to-coast basket after a steal with 3:15 left gave the Capers a two-point lead, 38-36.

“A lot of our players did,” Casterella said in reference to Harvey leaving it all on the floor in her final game. “There’s eight seniors and they played with a little chip on their shoulders. A lot of people didn’t expect us to be here, but with our tough schedule against some (Class) A schools that are still in the tournament says a lot.”

Falcons get even

Gould stole a Capers pass at midcourt before converting for the layup, tying the game at 38. Harvey scored two of her 10 fourth-quarter points to push the lead back to two, but Smith hit her fourth and fifth free throws of the frame to tie the score with under a minute to play.

Out of a timeout, Cape held the ball for the final shot. The Capers missed, but the ball caromed off a Freeport player and out of bounds, giving the seven-seed another opportunity. With 2.7-seconds remaining, Harvey took a pass and watched as her shot from beyond the arc hit the front of the rim and stay out, forcing a four-minute overtime period.

In the extra frame, after a Cape miss, Mason Baker-Schlendering sank a layup the next time down the court to give the Falcons the lead to stay. Another Caper miss and more dominance from the line from Smith, hitting 3-of-4 from the line to put the Capers away.

Following a Cape timeout, Wall scored her second field goal of the half, pushing the Freeport lead to 47-40, and after Saylor Wood’s hoop for Cape, Smith hit her final two attempts from the line to seal the victory.

“We lost six or seven seniors from last year,” Smith said. “I don’t think anyone really thought we would be here, so just putting in the work together and proving to everyone we could get back is such a fun experience.”

Of her 23 points, 15 came at the charity stripe on 19 attempts. The junior guard also hauled in 10 rebounds for the double-double. Wall added 13 points and six boards. Baker-Schlendering chipped in with eight points and six caroms. Gould had five points, eight boards and a pair of steals in the win.

Harvey led the Capers with 15 points, while Isabel Berman registered nine points in the loss.

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