MANTEO – Senior guard Qwenton Valentine hit a layup with three seconds to play here Friday night and forced an over-time period between the visiting Hertford County and host Manteo.

The Bears went on to post a 77-70 victory and claim their fifth win in six starts and moved to 1-0 inside the Northeastern Coastal Conference.

During the overtime session, Brandon Long hit a pair of hoops while Valentine (three), Lorenzo Benthall (two) and Lakendrick Lee (two) contributed from the free throw line.

The Redskins led 17-14 after the first period of play despite a pair of hoops from Long and Pert Simons.

In the second quarter, HCHS outscored their hosts 21-14 to claim a four-point (35-31) advantage at the intermission.

Hertford County trailed by seven (55-48) after three periods, but cut the lead to only a couple before Valentine forced the extra session.

Leading the comeback in the fourth quarter for Hertford County were Curt Jenkins (six points during the period), Benthall (a trey and a free throw) and Valentine, who had two buckets.

&uot;It was good to see our seniors step up and play the way they’re capable of,&uot; veteran coach Charles Simmons said. &uot; Any time you can win at Manteo in a conference game, it is big.

&uot;I was pleased with our defensive effort,&uot; he added. &uot;We made some big defensive stops in the fourth quarter and that allowed us to come back and win.&uot;

The Bears will now take a respite from conference play as they travel to Rocky Mount on Friday before hosting Brunswick Saturday.

Hertford County (77)

Pert Simons – 16, Qwenton Valentine – 13, Brandon Long – 12, Curt Jenkins – 10, L. Benthall – 8, R. Wiggins – 8, L. Lee – 4, F. Gatling – 3, T. Powell – 3

Manteo (70)

Travis Winstead – 31, Catlin Pruitt – 17, J. Jackson – 8, B. Pierce – 8, R. Clewer – 6