TORRINGTON – After coming up short on Friday evening against Class 3A No. 4-ranked Worland, the Torrington High School girls’ basketball team ended the 2020 portion of the schedule in a 66-49 win over No. 2-ranked Lyman on Saturday afternoon.

“This was a good win for us heading into the break. It always feels better when you get a win, especially against a good team,” THS Coach Jeff Halley said. “I told the kids all day, if we are going to beat them, we are going to have to earn it. We earned a little vacation, I guess.”

On Friday, the Lady Blazers let a 27-21 halftime lead slip through their fingers in a 48-44 loss to the Lady Warriors.

In the third quarter, Worland outscored Torrington 12-2, holding the Lady Blazers scoreless for much of the quarter.

A late bucket by junior Reece Halley proved to be the lone points in the third for Torrington.

“We let it get away in the third quarter,” Halley said. “We played with a good team. We proved we can play with a good team, but (Saturday) our goal to beat a good team.”

Over the final eight minutes, the Lady Blazers couldn’t make up any ground, playing even as the teams scored 15 points each.

“We got timid,” Halley said. “Reece had a good game, but everyone else kind defaulted, and no one could score in the second half.”

Halley led the team with 25 points and 10 rebounds, while junior Mattie Jones added seven points and four steals.

The next day, Torrington overcame a slow start, falling behind 13-3 midway through the first quarter.

“(Brice) Hanson is a good shooter. She buried the one eight feet behind the 3-point line, I thought, he we go again,” Halley said. “We settled in and started doing our thing. We handled their press better. We settled down. We started doing our game instead of theirs.”

The Lady Blazers battled back to tie the game at 16 at the end of the first.

In the second quarter, neither team held more than a two-point advantage as the teams found themselves tied at halftime.

Coming out of the break, the Lady Blazers scored the first five points.

“In the second half, we found the scorers,” Halley said. “We did a better job of defending (Hanson) and made the other kids try to score. They couldn’t, and that’s what we were hoping for.”

Lyman wasn’t going to go away quietly.

By the end of the third, the Lady Eagles regained a slim 45-44 advantage heading into the final quarter.

Over the final eight minutes, Torrington outscored Lyman 22-4. During that stretch, Lyman went seven minutes without scoring.

“That was awesome. We did things right. We took care of the ball and broke their press and scored. It was nice little run,” Halley said. “It is those baby steps of winning and being successful, and today was huge for us in that.”

Halley led the Lady Blazers with 21 points, while junior Sierra Allen recorded a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds. Senior Michaela Moorehouse added 10 points and five boards.

A total of nine Torrington players found the scoring column in the victory.

“Today was great, we had multiple scorers again. Kids remembered they can score and shoot,” Halley said. “Everyone shot with confidence and made players.”

The Lady Blazers head to Christmas break with a 2-2 record. Torrington returns to action on Friday, Jan. 8 on the road at Newcastle (2-2). Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.