Atlantic took on St. Albert for the second time this season on Thursday night. In their last meeting, Atlantic lost on the road 50-37. While Thursday’s match was not for conference credit, the Trojans hosted the Saints in what would turn out to be an exciting game for both teams.

The two JV squads were up first. Coach Craig Fredin selected an all-sophomore group to start the JV game–Alyssa Derby, Kennedy Goergen, Lauren Nicholas, Maycie Waters, and Taylor McCreedy.

St. Albert started the first quarter off with a bang, as they hit two three-pointers soon after the game got underway. Atlantic rebutted with a couple field goals, and trailed by one possession at the end of the first quarter, 6-4. A three by Nicholas gave the Trojans the lead at 7-6 in the second quarter. The group quickly added more buckets to extend their lead. At halftime, Atlantic was in front 17-8.

In the second half, St. Albert came back from their nine-point deficit, and took back the lead at 27-26. Atlantic would not be able to regain the lead as the opposition slowly pulled away from the Trojans. The Atlantic JV team would drop their third contest in a row 36-28.

Next up was the varsity game. St. Albert came to town holding a record of 3-5, while the Trojans showed up winless. Seniors Alyssa Ginther and Baylee Newell, juniors Corri Pelzer and Kenzie Waters, and sophomore Haley Rasmussen made up the starting lineup for the Trojans.

Atlantic took the lead at 2-1, and it would go on to flip-flop a few times early in the first quarter. An 8-0 St. Albert run allowed the challengers to get in front before the end of the opening period. The Trojans were behind the Saints 13-6 as the second quarter began. Two quick three-pointers by Saint Albert forced the Trojans to call a timeout. Atlantic outscored St. Albert out of the timeout, but trailed at halftime 26-13.

The Trojans creeped up on the Saints at a slow pace throughout the third quarter. Facing a 10-point debt as the fourth quarter got underway, the Atlantic girls knew they had to play smart in the final minutes. With four minutes to go, Atlantic was down by five. The Trojans continued to close in on the lead, and they trailed by one point with 2:21 left.

Fouls would then play a large role in the remainder of the contest. Waters was fouled and received the opportunity to have two shots from the free-throw line. She made both baskets, and the Trojans tied the game back up at 46-46. Rasmussen was also fouled, and sunk both of her free throws to give Atlantic the edge 48-46 with 1:36 left. Saint Albert would score one more field goal to tie the game up. Time would run out as the two teams stood even at 48-48.

In overtime, Atlantic added on four points to their total, while St. Albert fought back with a field goal and a three. The Saints reclaimed the lead with 52.3 seconds left, 53-52. A foul by Saint Albert sent Newell to the line, where she drained both of her free throws to put Atlantic in front by one. The Trojans would tack on four more points, and St. Albert was unable to net another basket. The hometown team won their first game of the season 58-53.

Four Trojans were in double-digits by the time the last buzzer sounded. Rasmussen and Newell finished with 15 points apiece, and Waters and Pelzer each had 11. The Atlantic squad had 18 rebounds on the night.

The Atlantic girls’ basketball team had not won a game against St. Albert since 2015, as part of the last winning season the group has had.

Next up for the Trojans is a rematch against Denison-Schleswig on Friday, Jan. 4 in the AHS gym. The group will be working over winter break on a variety of skills, as well as preparing for the Monarchs.