RIVERSIDE

Highland senior Sarah Burton scored a double-double in her final game.

And so did senior teammate Stella Slaymaker.

But in the final minutes of the Huskies’ first-round Class 1A girls basketball tournament game against North Cedar on Feb. 8, the spotlight was stolen by North Cedar senior Addison Shields.

Shields hit two three-pointers in the final 1:35 on a career night, leading the Knights back from an eight-point deficit and to a dramatic 58-54 win over the Huskies. The win broke an 11-game losing streak.

Burton scored a team-high 18 points and had a team-high 13 rebounds in her last Huskies game. Slaymaker had 12 points and 10 rebounds.

The Huskies were ahead 54-51 when Shields, who scored a career-high 22 points, hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 54.

Then, with 23 seconds left, Shield hit another 3-pointer to put North Cedar in front, 57-54.

“We just didn’t reset defensively,” Huskies head coach Jody Fink said. “They took advantage of some different things.”

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Highland’s players sadly walked off their home court as North Cedar’s players celebrated around Shields. The Huskies had won 14 games this season for the first time in five years.

Highland junior Katie Herrig began the game by hitting the first of her three 3-pointers. Then, a basket by Burton gave the Huskies a 5-0 lead.

Highland led by six points at halftime, 30-24, and went ahead by eight points in the third quarter. Still, Fink was nervous about how close North Cedar was able to keep the score when the Huskies were running their offense efficiently.

“They were going to stand there and fight,” Fink said of North Cedar.

Trailing by five points entering the fourth quarter, the Knights tied the game at 48 with 4:39 left on consecutive 3-pointers by Reese Sandberg and Mollie Ries.

A pair of free throws by Burton and a basket by Slaymaker put Highland back in front by five points, but that’s when Shields went to work with her long-range shots to force a tie at 54-54 and then a game-winning 3-pointer with 23 seconds left.

GAME STATS

North Cedar  11   13   16  18   --  58

Highland        10   20   15    9   --  54

North Cedar scoring: Addison Shields 22, Haley Hefflefinger 10, Addyson Lehrman 10, Mollie Ries 8, Reese Sandberg 4, Valerie Pruess 2, Maya Benhart 2.

Highland scoring: Sarah Burton 18, Katie Herrig 13, Stella Slaymaker 12, Katelyn Thomann 6, Kelsi Cerni 3, Mackenzie Davis 2.

North Cedar leading rebounders: Shields 11, Hefflefinger 8, Pruess 8.

Highland leading rebounders: Burton 13, Slaymaker 10, Herrig 9.