With the score tied 44-44 at the 1:36 mark of the fourth quarter of Highland Baptist’s game vs. Southside on Friday, the visiting Lady Sharks made a crucial mistake.

Highland guard M’Kiyiah Olivier was fouled while attempting a 3-pointer, and the freshman calmly swished all three free throws.

Olivier then proceeded to hit three more free throws and ultimately finished with 11 points as HBCS prevailed 50-45.

Highland senior post Marin Barras, who had a game-high 19 points, felt confident with Olivier at the line.

“I had a lot of confidence in her because she’s always been good since she’s been little,” Barras said. “Whenever they fouled her, I was like, ‘We got that,’ because she can score.

“In practice, she always shows it, too. She always has nice shots.”

Barras was the only Lady Bear who played every minute, and did so despite picking up her fourth foul with 5:52 remaining.

“I didn’t really get tired because I always drink a lot of water,” Barras laughed. “But yeah, Coach (Carol) Sensley has been practicing us hard, running us up and down the floor, so I got conditioned.”

At the Hanson tournament on Dec. 19, Southside beat the Lady Bears 49-47.

“It’s a nice win because they’re 5A and we get more power points,” Barras said. “Also, the loss that we had to them back during the Christmas holidays was just tough, so it was nice to come and get revenge.

“It’s a nice win to pump up our team and get ready for district. That’s important, because we want another district championship.”

Barras outdueled center Chania Domingue, who had 13 for the Lady Sharks (12-4).

“Coach Carol said the key to winning was going to be the post game in the lane because they had their big girl in there, and we handled it well,” Barras said.

“We’d been practicing for that, and the guards also did a really good job defending against Southside.”

Bri Sensley added 13 points for the Lady Bears (11-4), who built a 39-28 lead late in the third before Southside mounted a comeback.

“Bri is a competitor and she did hit some clutch baskets that contributed to momentum swings,” Carol Sensley said. “It takes those big buckets and she stepped up tonight and knocked that down.

“We’ve been playing hard and we’ve been playing with a lot of heart. There’s a lot of heart on this team. They care for each other. They like each other, and that’s important on the court. They’re very unselfish. They jell together well. I’m so proud of them.”