Free State High senior Sarah Coversup admitted she was nervous when she stepped to the free-throw line in a tie game with under 30 seconds left on Friday.

But after a deep breath, she settled in and drained the two free throws to lift the girls basketball team to a 42-40 road victory against Mill Valley.

Before Coversup’s free throws, the Jaguars had all of the momentum, roaring back from an 11-point deficit midway through the third quarter. The Firebirds missed six straight shots, while Mill Valley used seven points from senior point guard Jabria Leggett in a 13-2 run. Leggett finished with 17 points and eight rebounds, as she slashed past Free State defenders for layups.

Mill Valley junior Caitie Kaifes tied the game with 4:31 remaining on a jump shot, but the Firebirds answered as Coversup snatched the ball following a Free State turnover in the paint and immediately put it up for a two-point lead.

Leggett put the game back in a deadlock with a strong drive to the hoop with 1:39 left, and the Jaguars got the ball back with less than a minute remaining after an FSHS offensive foul, but they missed a jumper, and Coversup drew a foul on the rebound.

“This is a trend,” FSHS coach Bryan Duncan said. “We were very efficient in the first half. Second half, when you get tired in our five-out (offense), it gets a little more difficult because you have a harder time making those cuts. So that’s usually when we try to run a few more set (plays), but tonight because they did such a good job of taking those away, we had to stay with our five-game and we kind of just rode it out.”

After Coversup’s free throws, the Jaguars tried to drive to the rim to tie the game, but FSHS sophomore Madison Piper blocked the shot, and a desperation three-pointer by Leggett before the buzzer missed wide left.

The Firebirds (3-0) struggled on offense in the second half, as the Jaguars (1-1) double-teamed Coversup in the post, and put a lot of attention on Piper, who finished with seven points, eight rebounds and five assists, despite playing sick.

“They guarded Madison real well,” Duncan said. “They took her away, but she became a great passer and allowed other people to score. … Cameryn (Thomas) was excellent as a point guard tonight. Just up and down the lineup, we just played as a team. It was a team win.”

With the Jaguars focused on Coversup, who had a game-high 19 points by using her size to box out space in the paint, and Piper, senior forward Adriana Jadlow stepped up and scored five points in a 10-4 run to open the second half.

“I just try and fill my role as it goes,” said Jadlow, who had eight points and four boards. “I know lots of people are going to go after Madison and Sarah, and I know that I will have to step up at times, and this was just one of those times when I did and it worked.”

The Firebirds struggled down the stretch in tight games last season, but instead of crumbling when the offense struggled, they held tough and found a way to win.

“I think compared to last year, we definitely wouldn’t have won,” Jadlow said. “But I think what is helping us win these games is just the team chemistry is so much better. We’re just like one big family and that’s what really helps us.”

FREE STATE (42)

Cameryn Thomas 1-3 0-1 2, Jaycie Bishop 1-10 1-2 4, Adriana Jadlow 3-6 2-5 8, Madison Piper 3-8 0-0 7, Sarah Coversup 6-10 7-7 19, Hannah Shoemaker 1-2 0-0 2. Totals 15-39 10-15 42.

MILL VALLEY (40)

Lexie Myers 0-2 0-0 0, Whitney Hazlett 1-4 0-0 2, Courtney Carlson 0-5 0-0 0, Jabria Leggett 8-15 1-1 17, Catie Kaifes 6-10 5-6 18, Savannah Rudicel 1-4 1-4 3, Lacie Myers 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 16-40 7-11 40.

Free State 11 15 10 6 — 42

Mill Valley 9 12 13 6 — 40

Three-point goals: Free State 2-10 (Bishop, Piper); Mill Valley 1-9 (Kaifes). Turnovers: Free State 11, Mill Valley 14.