DALLASTOWN >> On two occasions Saturday, the Greencastle-Antrim girls basketball team found itself in a double-digit hole against Lancaster Catholic in a District 3 Class AAA quarterfinal game.

Both times, the Blue Devils fought back and pulled within three points, but each time the Crusaders hit a big shot to pull away and keep the lead, and Emily Colon's pair of free throws with 10 seconds left sealed the 59-52 win for Lancaster Catholic.

The Blue Devils will face Palmyra on Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Central Dauphin East for a chance to go to states.

"We were down big a couple of times in this game," Greencastle senior Chloe Hoover said, "but we just stepped back and kicked it into gear both times. Unfortunately, we came up a little short."

The opening minutes couldn't have started out much worse for the Blue Devils (22-2).

They turned the ball over on their first three possessions, and the Crusaders (24-2) used their press defense to open up the game on a 16-2 run.

"Their press definitely surprised us," Greencastle freshman Jenay Faulkner said. "We haven't seen a press like that at all this year."

Hoover said, "We watched them on tape, but it still seemed totally different once we got out on the court."

Lancaster Catholic led 18-7 after the first quarter, but Faulkner flipped the switch and took over the game in the second.

She struggled with foul trouble in the first quarter — two in the first three minutes — but Faulkner opened the second quarter with eight straight points. She scored or assisted on every basket in the first six minutes, and the Blue Devils cut the deficit to six.

After a basket by the Crusaders, Greencastle ended the second frame on a 6-3 run to go into the break trailing, 30-25.

Faulkner said, "We started to rebound a lot better and took care of the ball; that was the difference after the first quarter."

But Faulkner wasn't finished.

She continued her strong play and scored seven points in the third quarter, including a big 3-pointer at the end to put the Devils within two. Faulkner finished the game with 20 points and played calm and collected all game to help slow down the Crusaders' chaotic press defense.

"She is awesome," G-A coach Mike Rhine said. "She is a strong, determined player."

But just as the Blue Devils seemed poised to break through and take the lead, Lancaster Catholic went on another big run to pull back ahead.

The Crusaders opened the quarter on a 12-1 run, creating turnovers and hitting open shots in transition.

"We made some bad decisions with the ball at times, but it didn't slow down our play," Lancaster Catholic coach Lamar Kauffman said. "We still played with a purpose, and once we got the lead to 10, I was confident we would be OK."

Caroline Scarff was at the middle of the run for the Crusaders, using her height and soft touch to give the Greencastle defense fits. She finished the game with 18 points.

"I wish she would shoot every time she gets the ball," Kauffman said. "She is so tall and has such a good touch, she would make 10 if she shot 20."

The Crusaders built a 55-40 lead, but just as everything seemed lost for the Blue Devils, they made another run of their own.

Hannah Crist led the way this time, hitting two 3-pointers and scoring eight points in a 12-0 stretch by Greencastle to cut the deficit back down to three. Crist finished the game with 11 points and four assists.

The Blue Devils had three chances to tie the game late, but Hoover's three, which in the air looked certain to go in — caromed off the rim just deep, Crist's try fell just short and Faulkner's attempt also bounced out.

Rhine said, "I told the girls after the game that Michael Jordan probably missed more game-winners in his career than he made. We had some good looks, but they just didn't fall. I'm very proud of our girls. They were resilient tonight."

Colon then went to three free throw line with 10 seconds left and made 2 of 2 to seal the win.

"Emily's free throws were clutch," LC senior point guard Danielle Atkinson said. "They were putting a lot of pressure on us, and those shots made it a two-possession game and really sealed the deal."

Despite the emotional loss, Greencastle will have to rebound quickly to be ready for Palmyra on Tuesday.

Rhine said, "There's not much we can do now. Take a couple hours to think about it, and then turn around and get ready for Tuesday. That's how it goes."

"We're a resilient team," Hoover said. "We're going to bounce back and play our hardest (on Tuesday)."

Notes >> Hoover and Katie Gelsinger finished with 11 and 10 points, respectively, and Gelsinger also grabbed six rebounds ... Atkinson finished with 14 points for the Crusaders and Colon ended with 13 ... Only four players for G-A and five for Lancaster Catholic scored in the game.