(New Buffalo, MI) - The Lady Bison came from behind to defeat Michigan Lutheran at the buzzer at home Monday in girls’ high school basketball.

 

The Titans had a chance to go ahead at the free throw line with less than five seconds left on the clock but missed both shots.  New Buffalo grabbed the rebound and called time out with 2.9 seconds left in the game to set up a play. 

 

Aaron James inbounded the ball to Ava Mullen at half court. Abby Vitale caught the pass from Mullen while streaking to the rim and sank a lay-up just before the clock ran out.

 

The final score was 33 to 31 in the Berrien Cass St. Joseph Conference match-up.   “It feels amazing and so surprising and shocking because it was such a battle the whole game. We were just fighting so much and we wanted it so bad.  I just feel really good,” Vitale said.  Vitale said team worked hard at practice for the rematch.   “I knew that we could beat them,” said Nadia Collins.

 

The Bison were defeated by the Titans by 20 points Feb. 11 and were blown out by Michigan Lutheran in last year’s district championship game.  The Titans were without their best player, Jessi Jewell, who’s recovering from a sprained ankle.

 

Michigan Lutheran, ahead by as much as 10 points early in the fourth quarter, led the entire way until Mullen drove in for a bucket to tie the score with less than three minutes on the clock.  The Lady Bison were trailing by four-points when Mullen sank a three-point shot with less than a minute to play.  New Buffalo tied the score again when a missed free throw by Collins was rebounded by Kelsey Corkran who was fouled and hit one of her free throw shots.

 

Head Coach Scott Syme said his players came back from using their athletic ability to press the Titans harder on both sides of the court.  Mullen and Sophia DeOliveria led the Lady Bison offensive attack with eight points and six points respectively.