GRAHAMSVILLE, NY — It was a real bruiser of a game.

On Friday, January 26, the home team Lady Bears of Tri-Valley took on the visiting Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs in a hotly contested league matchup between the two rivals in the Bear pit.

At the close of the first frame, it looked like Sullivan West was headed to the victory lane, as they edged the Lady Bears 7-2.

In the second period, Tri-Valley started to surge back by outpacing the visitors by four points (10-6), taking a razor-slim one-point lead into the locker room at halftime.

Then the game began to get physical—a trait Tri-Valley is known for—as the Lady Bears ramped it up, outgunning Sullivan West 17-9 and 9-2 in the last frames.

At the final buzzer, the home team hoopsters defeated their rivals 38-24.

Early in the final period, Sabrina Martinez, one of the Lady Bulldogs’ top guns, went down during a melee under the Tri-Valley net, with a crack on the head that was clearly heard on the opposite end of the court.

By all accounts, she likely sustained an NFL-like concussion (minus a brain bucket) and could be out for several games.

But even with the inherent resilience of youth, that’s up in the air.

“It was a tough game, a lot of pressure… I tripped over one girl’s feet, and another girl pushed me down,” recalled Martinez after the game, holding a bag of ice to her sore head.

A mother’s reaction to watching her daughter hit the deck?

“Not very good… it was very upsetting,” said Tina Martinez.

On the upside, Martinez’s other daughter, Josephine, tried to rally her team after play resumed, but it just wasn’t enough to overcome the home-squad lead.

Speaking of concussions, earlier this season Tri-Valley’s Emily Starner was sidetracked by a reported concussion during practice, but is expected back in action.

Pluses and minuses: the Lady Bears dominated the game in the “threes” column as Morgan Shamro drilled five for 15 points, while Sullivan West showed they needed a bit more practice at the free-throw line, managing to score on only two of 14 attempts.

“We couldn’t rebound… Tri-Valley is physical, tough to play,” said Patrick Donovan, coach of the Lady Bulldogs (6-4 overall, 0-1 league).

Sometimes too much early-game energy and intensity isn’t the best game in town, as John Tenbus, helmsman of the Lady Bears (5-4 overall, 1-1 league), noted that his team started off “rushing shots and on defense had a lot of mental lapses.”

“Then we settled down and chipped away at their lead and came back… we got more confidence and started shooting a little better.”

“We always play physical; that’s how it is,” added Tenbus.

Tri-Valley’s top scorers: Shamro (17 total points) and with six each Jaclyn Musa and Jill Mungeer.

Sullivan West: Josephine Martinez (8), Kelsey Farrell (8), Sabrina Martinez (6).

Stats from the  free-throw line: TV 3/6 (50%), SW 2/14 (14%).

What a small world it really is: Sullivan West’s girls’ varsity basketball coach attended Tri-Valley, while Tri- Valley’s coach went to high school in Narrowsburg.

And now a word from the Lady Bears.

“I thought we played very well… we want to play hard as a team and win games,” said center Sam Raymond.

Morgan Shamro takes to the court as a senior co-captain and shooting guard.

“We came to win tonight… I couldn’t be more proud of the team; now it’s game time,” she said.

Tri-Valley’s other senior co-captain is Jaclyn Musa, a point guard.

Her goals for the season?

“Win the league, get to sectionals and go as far as we can,” replied Musa.