Down by a point with four seconds to play, the majority of the River Falls girls’ basketball team could do nothing but watch as the fate of the game was in the hands of Kaelin Jalowitz shooting a pair of free throws while trailing 47-46 Friday night.

Just a possession before, Jalowitz scored a bucket in the paint that was quickly countered by a basket on the other end from Eau Claire North.

Jalowitz confidently stepped up to the line and knocked down the first free throw to tie the game before a timeout was called.

After waiting patiently through a timeout, Jalowitz finally stepped up to the line and buried the second shot.

Another timeout was called, and the River Falls squad poured into center court to show their support for Jalowitz.

“I was just looking to attack the hoop and hopefully make something happen,” Jalowitz said on the final possessions of the eight-point performance.

The game was not quite wrapped up though, as the Huskies had one last chance to win the game. Through a string of three straight timeouts, the Wildcats locked things down as the final shot was off-line in a 48-47 win.

The Wildcats picked up their fourth straight win to improve to 7-5 (3-3 in conference play) and got a win in the first game coming out of winter break.

“I think we’re just starting to play as a team more,” Jalowitz said. “I think just winning one game and then focusing on winning the next is kind of helping us.”

One of the primary reasons the Huskies led at the half by a score of 27-26 was the on-ball pressure and live-ball turnovers the squad was forcing. Head Coach Ian Sticht said focusing on ball security helped the team moving into the second half.

“Early we tried to play fast,” Sticht said. “North wants to play up and down, and I think we were trying to do that too, get a rebound and get the ball up the floor. In the second half I think we did a better job of controlling it and not trying to force those things.”

Jordan Schwantz was controlling the game on both ends for much of the second half, dominating both the interior and perimeter to finish the half with 13 and the game with 19 points.

Schwantz nailed a trio of three-pointers in the second half, which Sticht mentioned as one of the deciding factors in the game.

“We call it the ‘Mamba Mentality’ a little bit,” Sticht said. “She badly misses a three from the top of the key, next possession, she gets one in the corner, doesn’t hesitate, shoots it right away, nothing but the bottom of the net.”

Moving forward, Sticht said the experience of a tightly contested game such as Friday’s matchup will help the team in future battles.

“That’s a game you don’t forget playing in, especially when you win it,” Sticht said. “We know we cannot give up any easy looks for them, and our ability to attack on offense.”