When the South Whidbey girls basketball team lost at home to Sultan on Friday, 58-46, it seemed their season was teetering on the brink.

But the very next day, they rallied for a 57-55 victory over Cedarcrest.

The girls are 5-5 in the league and still in the hunt for a number-two berth in district playoffs.

“Against Sultan, there were poor decisions made with the ball, poor shooting and our key defensive player got into foul trouble,” said Falcon coach Henry Pope. “And then there was Bianca O’Hara, who scored 30 points — five more than Lindsey Newman — and was on fire with her shooting.”

The next day, the points bounced back and forth to the last minute, when the coach brought in Taylor Pope with the score about even.

Pope immediately shot a three-pointer, then followed with an assist to Newman for a perfect layup and the game.

“I hadn’t played in the third quarter,” Pope recalled. “I was afraid to go in, thought I’d screw things up, but I made the shot and then Lindsey sealed it with three girls on top of her.”

Coach Pope added that sharing the ball and being smarter with long passes kept the girls competitive.

Newman led against the Red Wolves with 22 points. Jessica Manca dropped in nine and Ashlinn Prosch added seven. Alannah Alber and Reilly O’Sullivan scored six each and Pope finished with three.

After 16 games, Newman still leads the state in scoring with 446 points.

Thursday, Feb. 12, the girls host Granite Falls. At half time, the Elementary School Lil’ Dribblers will perform.