Despite being surrounded by Lewiston players, Edward Little’s Chantel Ouellette drives to the basket during Friday night’s game in Auburn. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)

AUBURN — Lewiston didn’t let Edward Little pull away, and the Red Eddies refused to let the Blue Devils overtake them.

“I kind of knew that it was going to be a close game because it’s our rivalry, so everyone’s just hype and stuff,” Red Eddies guard Grace Fontaine said.

Edward Little finally finished its rival off in the final three minutes Friday night, winning 58-47 in Class AA North girls’ basketball.

“I’m really happy with how we grinded out a win,” Red Eddies coach Chris Cifelli said. “And, offensively, thank goodness, we had one of our best night’s shooting. That was really important to come through offensively.”

The Red Eddies scored the first six points of the game, but the Blue Devils caught up early in the second quarter when Myah Nicolas’ 3-pointer cut the lead to 20-19.

That set the tone for the type of effort Lewiston was going to put forth.

“We played really hard,” Lewiston coach Lynn Girouard said. “We played our hearts out tonight. We had a game plan, we executed.”

Edward Little also set a tone when Grace Fontaine answered with a 3-pointer.

The Blue Devils were going to hang around, but the Red Eddies were going to keep pushing them away.

“We made some big baskets,” Cifelli said. “Credit to Lewiston, they made some big baskets and hung around the whole entire game, we couldn’t shake them, but we did make some big baskets in big spots.”

Lewston’s Maddy Foster tied the game at 23-23, but Jade Perry’s 3 gave the lead back to Edward Little.

Perry’s trey started a 10-0 run by the Red Eddies, and they led 39-27 at halftime.

Edward Little’s Graces showed little mercy in the first half, Fontaine scored 13 points and Beaudet had 11. Between them, they made five 3s in the first two quarters.

“I think (the team) did good offensively, but not necessarily defensively,” Fontaine said. “But tonight was a big game for us for offense.”

In the second half, Fontaine and Beaudet were held to one point combined. In fact, the Blue Devils slowed the entire Red Eddies offense in the second half, especially the third quarter when they only managed one point until Hannah Chaput took over late in the period.

Lewiston’s defense and big shots by senior Victoria Harris and freshman Emily Strachan cut the deficit to 40-38 midway through the third.

Chaput, a sophomore who transferred from Lewiston in the offseason, hit a jumper made it a four-point lead. Then, in the final 15 seconds with Edward Little up 43-40, Chaput hit a 3 and then made a steal and scored a layup with about a second left, sending the Red Eddies into the final period up eight, 48-40.

“That was a big stretch,” Cifelli said.

The Blue Devils battled back to within five twice in the fourth, but both times Chantel Ouellette quelled the comebacks, first with a pair of free throws, and with a layup the second time.

“Just a few defensive lapses,” Girouard said. “Turned the ball over at not the best times in the game … we had them on the ropes.”

Oullette finished off the scoring with four foul shots down the stretch. She made nine free throws and finished with a team-high 15 points. Fontaine scored 13 and Beaudet had 12. Chaput finished with nine and Perry with eight.

Harris, who made eight free throws, led all scorers with 16. Nicholas added 10, and Strachan and Foster each contributed seven.

“You could tell through warm-ups that Lewiston was very excited to play, very focused,” Cifelli said. “When they had that immediate success, we knew we were going to be in for a dogfight.

“We had enough stops in us,” Cifelli added, “and then we answered on the other side.”

Edward Little’s Grace Beaudet, right, dribbles under the basket as Lewiston’s Victoria Harris moves in to defend during Friday night’s game in Auburn. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)

Edward Little’s Grace Fontaine, left, heads to the basket for a layup as Lewiston’s Cece Racine defends during Friday night’s game in Auburn. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)

Edward LIttle’s Chantel Ouellette, center, drives to the basket as Lewiston’s Victoria Harris, left, tries to stop her during Friday night’s game in Auburn. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)