Leavitt’s Taylor White (23) pulls down a rebound as Mt Blue’s Rylee Keaten (30) defends during Friday’s game in Farmington. Tony Blasi/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

FARMINGTON — The Mt. Blue Cougars kept their poise against the tenacious Leavitt Hornets in a girls basketball matchup Friday night.

The Cougars slowly pulled away from the Hornets (0-3) in the third quarter and rolled to a 48-31 victory. 

The win is Mt. Blue’s (1-1) first of the season.

“I liked that we got a win,” Mt. Blue coach Fred Conlogue said. “So we are headed in the right direction. We had a tough battle last game, and I think we corrected some of the things that we didn’t do in the first game.

“(Leavitt) is gutsy. They only had 10 points at halftime, but they didn’t stop playing. They battled the whole game. We play them down there (later in the season) and we know it is always a war down there.”

Leavitt coach Dave Gerrish said the Cougars played with poise down the stretch.

“That is something we have been working on,” Conlogue said. “Doing the little things and taking care of every possession, and we are sharing the ball a lot better, though. We are trying to get the best shot we can get every night.”

Leavitt is a young team, but it wasn’t evident in the first half. The Hornets made the Cougars work for every basket, but by the time the first half ended, Mt. Blue built a 22-10 lead.

“Two seniors, I think three sophomores, something in that area, (so) yeah, we are young,” Gerrish said. “I thought we defended well. I think we would have been right in the game. We turned the ball over more than we liked to.”

Mt Blue’s Kaitlin Blodgett (40) goes up for a shot as Leavitt’s Taylor White(23) tries to intervene in a basketball game Friday in Farmington. Tony Blasi/Sun Journal Buy this Photo

The Cougars didn’t lose their edge in the third quarter, in fact they sharpened it and constructed a sturdy 36-21 lead.

Mt. Blue’s Lexi Mittelstadt had some key spurts and eventually tossed in a game-high 17 points. Sophomore teammate Hannah Wilbur followed with 10 points.

“Of course, Mittelstadt hurt us a little bit here and there,” Gerrish said. “Other than that, I thought we got up and down pretty well, defended pretty well. They were just a more poised team than we were.

“I think Mt. Blue plays well. They get up the floor well. They pass well. I think they hurt us mostly on rebounds. We need to rebound better. That was our big discussion tonight.”

The Hornets demonstrated their usual stubbornness on defense, but Mt. Blue worked around Leavitt’s tough stand.

Taylor White led the Hornets with nine points and pulled down several key rebounds.

Leavitt coach Dave Gerrish speaks with his players after the first quarter in Farmington on Friday. Tony Blasi/Sun Journal Buy this Photo