Atlee’s shallow roster seemed like it might prove a huge liability in the second quarter of its Capital District girls basketball contest against visiting Hanover on Friday night.

  While the Raiders caught up with the Hawks six minutes into the second quarter, four of their seven players had picked up two fouls apiece. A switch to a zone defense didn’t hurt, however, as the Raiders, driven by a 27-point performance by Brittany Hill and a 12-2 run in the last five minutes of the game, overcame Hanover’s deeper but younger squad to claim a 52-46 victory.

  Atlee (5-4 Capital, 6-8) began with man-to-man coverage, but as the fouls mounted it was clear something had to give.

  “I started worrying about foul trouble with six minutes in the second quarter,” said Atlee coach Anna Prillaman.

  “That’s when I decided to go zone because you’re less likely to pick up fouls than in man-to-man. It worked pretty well for us.”

  Hanover (3-6, 6-10) didn’t benefit from the less in-your-face Raiders defense. In the final minute of the first half, the Raiders outscored the Hawks 7-5 to take a 27-25 lead into intermission.

  One of the key factors in the Raiders’ rally was Hall finding the range on offense.

  After struggling somewhat through the first quarter, she hit a jumper just before the buzzer in the first quarter and stayed hot through the second, scoring 11 of Atlee’s 20 second-quarter points.

  “I wasn’t hitting my shots very well, but that shot helped me get my confidence up,” Hill said of the shot at the end of the first quarter.

  Hanover coach Kevin Brooks was an admirer of Hill’s efforts.

  “They have a Division I player — Hill’s a very good player,” Brooks said. “She hit a lot of tough shots. She had a lot of open shots that she converted.”

  Hill wasn’t the only Raider to find her self-confidence in the second-quarter.

  “Everybody kind of rallied together, hitting their shots,” Hill said. “They started playing better defense and weren’t fouling so much.”

  The Raiders weren’t quite able to put away the Hawks, and early in the fourth quarter Hanover pulled ahead 44-40, with 5:36 left in the game. Atlee’s Karlie Suber, however, hit a 3-pointer that signaled the Raiders weren’t finished.

  “That was a big 3,” Hill said. “After she hit that shot, everybody calmed down and started playing a better game.”

  Atlee’s defense also was buoyed by that shot. In the next minute, the Raiders picked off a couple of Hanover balls and converted them into baskets to claim a 48-44 lead with 3:48 left.

  Atlee led only 50-46 for most of the final two minutes.

  In desperation, the Hawks resorted to fouling, but it took six fouls in 20 seconds to put a Raider — Hill — on the line for a one-and-one with 21 seconds to go. She sank both shots.

  “I could breathe a little bit easier,” Hill said.

  Suber finished with 14 points, followed by Taylor Henderson with 11. Mariah Douglas led Hanover with 12 points, and Taylor Woolard with 10.

  Dave Lawrence is a special correspondent for the Richmond Times Dispatch.
 
HANOVER (3-6 Capital, 6-10) Woolard 10, Barrett 3, Throckmorton 6, Caler 0, Deadmon 2, Webb 6, Douglas 12, Jordan 4, Pachner 1, Fehl 2. Totals 16 9-12 46.
ATLEE (5-4, 6-8) Suber 14, Hill 27, Spiers 0, Keyes 0, Henderson 11, Staples 0, Dandridge 0. Totals 21 5-11 52.
Hanover….............11 14 11 10 — 46
Atlee ...................... 7 20 13 12 — 52
3-point goals: H —Woolard 3