RICHMOND — In a span of 10 seconds, Maddison Egan made three distinctive plays that typically help teams win basketball games.

The Rangeley senior hustled after a loose ball to save a possession, hit a shot that gave the Lakers the lead for good, and also had a key offensive rebound on her own shot that set up crucial free throws to extended the lead.

Those three hustle plays epitomized Rangeley’s comeback in a 53-49 overtime win over Richmond on Tuesday.

Egan has been battling an injury all season, but made her presence felt in those key moments in overtime.

“We’re hurting without Maddie Egan on the floor for 32 minutes,” Rangeley coach Heidi Deery said. “She has an injury, and we’re nursing her back. Even though she’s not necessarily a big scorer, she’s a huge physical player for us, an excellent passer and shows a lot of leadership on the floor.”

The Lakers were down by as many as 13 in the first half but regrouped and slowly chipped away at the lead. Down by seven entering the fourth, the Lakers continued to rally and finished regulation with an 8-2 run to tie the game 45-45.

“It’s a huge win,” Egan said. “We really needed this. We’ve been working really hard the last couple of weeks on ways to stop them.”

Richmond (8-2) is ranked fourth in Class C South. The win only bolsters Rangeley’s top seeding in Class D South. To win in such dramatic fashion was worth a bundle to the Lakers (12-1), as well.

“I knew we’re in it every year but we’ve got a young team,” said Deery, whose only loss was to Richmond earlier in the year. “We’ve come so far since November, emotionally, character-wise and believing in ourselves and what we’re trying to do. This was a great opportunity for us.”

Richmond took the lead in overtime, but Egan played a significant role in turning the tide. The Bobcats were up by one and had forced three Rangeley turnovers in overtime. Just when it looked like the Lakers might turn it over again, Egan dove on the floor for the ball. She grabbed it and rolled it to Blayke Morin.

“When I got on the ground, I didn’t know what to do,” said Egan. “I saw Blayke and rolled it out to her. That worked out really well.”

Moments later, she got the ball back and hit a short jumper for the 47-46 lead with 2:03 left.

Egan had the chance at a three-point play but missed the free throw. She  still managed to chase down her own rebound. She got the ball to Natasha Haley, who was fouled and padded the lead with two free throws with 1:57 left.

“We’ve been working on following our shot a lot,” Egan said. “That’s been one of our main focuses and kicking it out to one of our perimeter shooters.”

Haley finished with 19 points, including 11 points in the final quarter and overtime. All but two came from the free throw line. Sydney Royce and Morin each had 10 while Egan finished with eight and Celia Philbrick with seven. Rangeley hit eight straight free throws in the fourth quarter and were 6-for-11 in overtime.

“We knew they were going to foul us,” Deery said. “We practice every single night those pressure situations and shoot foul shots. I was really happy to see them step up. We weren’t perfect, but we got the job done.”

Richmond got 22 points from Sydney Tilton and 11 from Autumn Acord. The Bobcats were up six with 4:40 left after a Ashley Abbott 3, but Richmond scored just two points the rest of the way in regulation and managed just four foul shots in overtime. Richmond shot 3-for-8 in the fourth and were 0-for-2 in overtime while turning the ball over nearly 40 times, including 11 times in the fourth quarter and overtime.

“I liked the effort but it was a lot of little mistakes like the travels,” Richmond coach Mike Ladner said. “A lot of it is mostly inexperience. Hopefully, we learn from our mistakes.”

Rangeley had a horrible start and were down 28-15 in the second quarter. Despite 11 turnovers in the first quarter and an 0-for-7 start from the floor, the Lakers were still within 9-7 after the first quarter.

Richmond opened the lead in the second with an 11-2 run. Kelsey Anair had five points during that run, including a 3. Tilton had 10 points in the second as Richmond built a 30-19 lead by halftime. One bright spot for the Lakers was Philbrick, who  scored all seven of her points in the first half.

“I played it a little cool with them but then I laid it on them and asked them, ‘What are you guys made of?'” Deery said. “I think they came out a little tight. I think our inexperience and lack of composure showed in that first half.”

Rangeley had played zone in the first half but opted to go back to man-to-man in the second half. Deery challenged her team to respond.

“We had a game plan and we didn’t execute,” Deery said. “So I said, ‘You have two minutes to show me that we can compete with them in the halfcourt. If not, I’m calling a timout and we’re going to Plan C.”

The Lakers started to slow down the Richmond offense, holding the Bobcats to just eight points in the third. Rangeley also started to get the offense going. Players like Haley, Egan, Royce and Morin all scored in the third as Rangeley closed the gap to 38-31.

“I was really happy with the way they came back,” Deery said. “They kept grinding it back. I could see at the end of the third quarter. We had cut the lead in half.”

Though Rangeley started the fourth with six straight points and got within one, a Tilton steal and Abbott’s 3 bumped the lead back up to 43-37 with 4:40 left. The Lakers kept coming. Haley sank four free throws while Royce hit a jumper as Rangeley tied it 43-43 with 2:06 left. Meranda Martin scored on a steal to give the Bobcats the lead but two free throws by Morin tied it with 1:09 remaining. Both teams had possessions and a chance for the lead in the final minute but failed.

“The momentum changed,” Ladner said. “It changed in a second. That’s what I tell the girls. They have to stay focused. The game can change just like that.”

kmills@sunjournal.com