Ottawa ? With an 18-point lead in the second half, Ottawa coach Cliff McCullough didn’t figure he would need to rely on free throws to squeak out a victory over Louisburg, but that’s what happened.

Louisburg cut the lead to three in a late rally fueled by five three-point shots. But Ottawa kept Louisburg at bay with free-throw shooting, especially from Caitlin Smith’s four free-throws in the fourth quarter.

“Give them credit. They came storming back,” McCullough said. “We found a way to pull it out and win.”

Ottawa came out strong from an 11-point halftime lead to build the lead to 18, but struggled as Louisburg managed to neutralize Ottawa’s main scoring threat, Kelsie Studley, limiting her to only 10 points, eight below her average.