KENNEBUNK — The Kennebunk girls basketball team fell to the visiting Falmouth squad thanks to tight defense and consistent momentum throughout the four quarters of play.

Falmouth was led by Hadley Wiggin with nine points, while Adelaide Cooke scored eight. Sierra Tartre led Kennebunk with nine points.

The Yachtsmen jumped to a quick lead in the first quarter. In the first two minutes of action, Falmouth strung together six straight points, giving them a 6-0 lead.

Kennebunk looked to regain some momentum when Eliza Bartlett drove the ball the length of the court for two.

A minute later, Tartre added two off a midcourt steal that she converted for an easy layup.

The Rams were down 8-5 heading into the second quarter – and from that point forward had no answer for Falmouth’s stingy defense.

In the second quarter the Yachtsmen took control of the game, outscoring Kennebunk 11-5.

Falmouth outplayed the Rams on both sides of the court, making multiple plays during the second quarter, including a buzzer beating 3-pointer from Maddy Adams giving Falmouth a solid 19-10 lead heading into the half.

Falmouth came out in the second half on fire, beginning the third by going on an 8-2 run, with both points allowed being from free throws.

Although the Rams failed to get within striking distance, they managed to make enough plays to keep the game within reason, including a deep 3-pointer by Stephanie Sullivan midway through the third.

The Rams continued to fight in the final quarter, however were unable to come close enough as the minutes waned.

Both teams scored seven points in a competitive fourth quarter, however Falmouth managed to pull away with a decisive 37-26 victory.

Kennebunk coach Rob Sullivan was disappointed with his team’s overall effort during the contest.

“They just absolutely outplayed us. They out-hustled us, they outworked us. That was the first time all year that I’ve been able to say that,” said Sullivan. “They out-coached us, they outplayed us and that can’t happen. I know we are trying to work past a few unsuccessful seasons, but we need to be able to handle those high-pressure situations better and we didn’t tonight.”

Despite the loss, Sullivan feels that the team’s problems are fixable – and it all starts with believing in themselves.

“It’s just confidence. We got a lot of open shots early that just were not coming down,” said Sullivan. “We need to figure out a way to play better when the shots aren’t coming down. We need to shoot better, we need to get to the rim more. We just need to do everything a little bit better and we’ll be OK.”

As the Rams look towards Friday’s matchup against Cape Elizabeth, Sullivan hopes his team will learn from the loss and come in ready to work.

“Hopefully they aren’t taking this well, for tonight at least. But hopefully they come in tomorrow ready to go,” said Sullivan. “We have a lot of games left, this didn’t end our season by any stretch but it didn’t help. We just need to pick ourselves back up.”

— Sports Staff Writer Alex Sponseller can be reached at sports@journaltribune.com or at 282-1535 ext. 323. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.