MERRY HILL – The Lady Rams of Ridgecroft School held on down the stretch in a closely contested match against Lawrence Academy to get a 44 – 42 win here Friday night.

Ridgecroft needed a 12 point 10 steal performance by Sarah Beth Greene to overcome the dominating interior play of the Lady Warriors, and the early foul trouble of guard Hayes Bryant.

Together, Lawrence’s Jodi White and Kendall Street were an unstoppable force in the paint, aggressively snatching rebounds on the defensive end and showing a wide array of low post moves on offense that Ridgecroft never found a way to stop.

Early jumpers by Ridgecroft’s Lauren Lilley and Jessica Bolton countered the Lawrence inside attack, but the Lady Warriors found some outside shooting themselves with guard Laurel Taylor finding her range in the second quarter.

The first half was a seesaw battle that ended with score tied 20-20.

The second half looked a lot like the first, with neither team willing to allow the other to pull away.

Ridgecroft guard April Pilard, forced to play extensive minutes with Bryant in foul trouble, managed a balanced Ram team that was forced to score from the outside.

On several possessions Lawrence found themselves out of position defensively and allowed Lilley and Bolton uncontested shots to keep the game close.

Ridgecroft got a break when Street, who led the Warriors with 15 points, fouled out with just under two minutes left in the game.

Lilley hit the ensuing free throws to put the Lady Rams up by three. A steal by Jo Revelle Murray and a lay-up by Stephanie Northcott, who led the Lady Rams with 14 points, gave Ridgecroft a five-point lead with 50 seconds left in the game.

Taylor hit a three-pointer cut the lead to two and Lawrence Academy never managed another offensive attempt as Ridgecroft got the close win, in a front of a large contingency of fans that had made the trip for the road game.

Lady Rams (44): Stephanie Northcott – 14, Sarah Beth Greene – 12, L. Lilley

– 8, H. Bryant – 5, J. Murray – 3,

– 2, A. Pilard – 2

Lady Warriors (42):

Kendall Street – 14, Jodi White – 11, L. Taylor – 6, K. Gilliam – 4, J. Johnson – 2, J. Harden – 2, C. Finnerty – 2