However, it simply wouldn’t last.

After Jersey Shore cut its deficit down to nine with a Leena Loomis free throw early in the third, things would fall apart as SJC locked in. Jacee Cunningham and Aubree Yartz became more imposing in the paint, Naomi Crispin built on her 20-point outing and the Wolfpack would finish on a 31-11 run, closing out Shore’s five-game win streak in dominant fashion, 66-37.

It was a tough loss for a young squad that’s hit its stride as of late. But the team recognized the challenge that awaited it on Thursday night, and head coach Mike Schall felt like it was a matchup that’ll help add to their recent growth.

“We probably played against the two best post players (Cunningham and Yartz) and arguably the best guard (Crispin) that we’ll see this season,” said Schall on Saint Joseph’s Catholic. “We knew that we were going against a quality basketball team that truly has fun playing basketball, and we wanted them to feel that. They felt that tonight.”

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Avery Depasqua (10) looks for a way to the basket during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

Knowing about the challenge, there was a sense of timidness on display from the Bulldogs in the game’s early goings. It struggled with turnovers, rebounding and creating shot opportunities, and the result was an opposing 12-0 run to start – a lead which was maintained through to the end of the first.

However, once the Bulldogs shook off that timidness, they were able to catch the Wolfpack off guard and begin carving a path towards making it a competitive game.

Trailing 26-11 with five minutes to go in the first, Kylie Schall would respond to an SJC three with one of her own to jumpstart a strong span for Jersey Shore. Leena Loomis added a layup off an assist from Marlee Lehman to narrow the gap to ten.

Though the Wolfpack responded to make it 28-16, the fireworks continued for Shore. Avery Depasqua converted back-to-back shots, first hitting a layup off a Schall assist before draining a fastbreak three. And suddenly, the Bulldogs were down by just seven.

Unfortunately for Shore, the cracks would reemerge from there. Saint Joseph’s Catholic closed out the stanza on a 5-0 run, holding the Bulldogs scoreless for almost three minutes. And though a Lehman layup and Loomis free throw would help them cut their deficit back below double figures, that momentum was short-lived.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Marlee Lehman (11) moves in to shoot around Saint Joseph Catholic's Seki Chappell (13) during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

In the blink of an eye, SJC put together a 9-2 run, one which grew to 18-6 by the end of the third. Its defense clamped up, eliminating the layups and occasional open three that allowed Jersey Shore to get back in it. And offensively, its size underneath and Crispin’s ability as a scorer finally became too much for them to overcome.

“We did recover after that (rough first), got over the mental mistakes and played a little better. But we just never got in the groove that same way in the second half,” said Schall.

Marlee Lehman led the team on the night scoring wise, notching 13 points while also leading the team in assists with three. Avery Depasqua finished with nine points, playing a key role in the team establishing a spark in the second and adding two assists and three rebounds.

Leena Loomis did what she could against a stout post presence, scoring eight points and grabbing five boards – three on the offensive end. And Sadie Schall led the team rebounding wise with six.

“Leena, a senior that doesn’t have a ton of basketball experience, hacked at them better than some of our girls with a lot more basketball experience,” said Schall when discussing individual standouts.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Leena Loomis (4) moves in to shoot around Saint Joseph Catholic's Aubrey Yartz (11) during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

“Trying to get a team like that on their heels defensively or offensively is hard to do. The only way to do that is to go at them, and we didn’t do that. But Leena did a good job with that.”

With the loss, the Bulldogs dropped down to 13-7 on the season while closing out a five-game win streak. They’ll look to establish a new one on the road next Monday, facing Loyalsock at 1 p.m. for their second-to-last game of the regular season.

“We’re just thinking about practice tomorrow and how we’re going to work hard to get better,” said Schall on his thoughts moving forward. “We want to level up our team communication on defense so that we can make different reads at a higher level and just keep working hard.

Saint Joseph’s Catholic 66, Jersey Shore 37

SAINT JOSEPH’S CATHOLIC (66)

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Marlee Lehman (11) moves in to shoot around Saint Joseph Catholic's Naomi Crispin (3) during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

Alexia Luckovich 6 0-0 14; Naomi Crispin 9 0-0 20; Jacee Cunningham 6 1-2 13; Aubrey Yartz 7 1-1 15; Layla Felzer 2 0-2 4. Totals 30 2-5 66.

JERSEY SHORE (37)

Leena Loomis 3 2-4 8; Avery Depasqua 3 2-2 9; Marlee Lehman 6 0-0 13; Sadie Schall 1 0-0 2; Kylie Schall 1 0-0 3; Gracelyn Frantz 1 0-0 2. Totals 15 4-6 37.

Saint Joseph’s 21 12 18 15 – 66

Jersey Shore 9 12 10 6 – 37

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Sadie Schall (4) is blocked by Saint Joseph Catholic's Aubrey Yartz (11) on her way to the basket during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

Three-pointers: Saint Joseph’s Catholic 4 (Luckovich 2, Crispin 2); Jersey Shore 3 (Depasqua, Lehman, K. Schall).

Records: Saint Joseph’s Catholic 20-2; Jersey Shore 13-7.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Kylie Schall (15) looks to pass during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Avery Depasqua looks for a way through Saint Joseph Catholic's defense during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore head coach Mike Schall meets with his players during a high school girls basketball game against Saint Joseph Catholic at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.

RALPH WILSON/Sun-Gazette Correspondent Jersey Shore's Sadie Schall (14) looks to shoot around Saint Joseph Catholic's Aubrey Yartz (11) during a high school girls basketball game at Jersey Shore on Thursday. St. Joseph won 66-37.