BELHAVEN — Pungo overcame a 26-13 halftime deficit to defeat rival Terra Ceia 52-40 on Tuesday. The visiting Lady Knights seemed to have all the momentum when the second quarter ended. They closed it out on a 10-0 run that started and finished with layups by Catherine Meijer.

The Lady Raiders knew they weren’t out of it yet. They cut into the 13-point deficit with a 11-2 run to kick off the second half. In quick succession, Emily Spencer stole the ball and broke out for a layup and then Emma Allen knocked down a shot from mid range right after. Macy Morgan added a free throw to bring Pungo within four, 28-24.

“(I told them) we were flat. We weren’t playing,” Pungo coach Melanie Sawyer said. “We weren’t hustling. They were outplaying us. I told them they had to start hustling, get down court and pick up the defense.”

A couple more trips to the charity stripe helped the Lady Raiders take the lead as the third period wound down. They had 35 total free-throw attempts to Terra Ceia’s 11. Rebecca Harrison added a layup in transition to tie the game at 35-35 heading into the final eight minutes.

More opportunities at the free-throw line allowed Pungo to pull away in the fourth. The home side took a 43-37 lead, which prompted another speech from Sawyer. She wanted the girls to keep their grip on the game.

“I just wanted them to slow it down,” she said. “Spread it out, hold it and lets run the time off. We didn’t have to score any more and they did a good job with it.”

Terra Ceia made it a one-possession game, closing the gap to 43-40. That was all the Lady Knights’ offense would produce, though. Pungo moved the ball around the perimeter and occasionally went inside when an easy layup was created.

Pungo’s spread the scoring well in the win. Taylor Mann usually receives the majority of scoring chances for her team, but Terra Ceia overcompensated for her on defense. That opened up the floor for the rest of the Lady Raiders and they answered accordingly.

“Terra Ceia did a really good job of collapsing on Taylor,” Sawyer said. “So, everybody else had to step up. They’re going to have to do that a lot. They did a good job. Once they got in a flow, the other girls — Emma Allen, Emily (Spencer), Macy (Morgan) — all of them stepped up. Rebecca Hodges had a great game.”

A win is always nice, but knocking off a rival in front of a packed home gym makes it sweeter. The Lady Raiders were able to do that in front of a crowd that barely had standing room.

Terra Ceia, on the other hand, sets its sights on the next game. Coach Darren Hubers vows to be ready when the two teams meet in Pantego for the regular-season finale.