The Flathead Bravettes recovered from three shaky quarters to pull out a come-from-behind 44-35 victory over Polson in an inter-class basketball game Thursday at Flathead High School.

Class AA Flathead (5-3, 1-1 Western AA) trailed by as many as eight points in the third quarter before rallying to win for the third time in four games and remain unbeaten against Class A opponents.

The loss snapped a two-game winning streak for Class A Polson (2-8, 1-1 Northwestern A), which was playing a Class AA opponent for the first time this season.

“It wasn’t a good game, but we pulled it out,” said Emma Andrews, who led the Bravettes with 14 points. “We started playing as a team, which was good, and we stayed out of foul trouble for the most part.”

Polson took its biggest lead in the third quarter when guard Anna DiGiallonardo converted a pair of free throws to put the Pirates up by eight, but Flathead finished the quarter with five straight points on a free throw by Jessika Abbrescia, a putback by Emily Russell and a layup by Andrews.

The Bravettes maintained that momentum in the fourth quarter, starting the frame with a 12-2 run powered by their full-court pressure, which forced Polson into turnovers that led to easy points in transition. Andrews made a transition layup after a steal by Abbrescia to tie the score at 30, then Jessica Simmons knocked down a pair of free throws to give Flathead its first lead of the game.

Andrews and senior guard Dani Davis said getting that lead alleviated the pressure they were feeling and allowed the Bravettes to settle down and play their game.

“It was just relief that we had the lead,” Andrews said.

Added Davis: “We got the lead and we were like, ‘Finally we’re playing basketball.’”

The Bravettes were in control from that point on as Andrews picked off a pass at midcourt and took it in for an easy layup, then consecutive layups by Simmons and Abbrescia put the Bravettes up by eight.

DiGiallonardo scored two points at the foul line to break up the Flathead run, but a driving layup by Davis, a pair of free throws by Tana Fountain and a transition layup by Andrews sealed the win for the Bravettes.

“We wanted to press the whole game, but we just couldn’t get into it how we wanted to,” Flathead coach Karly Tait said. “Baskets didn’t fall, finally they did in the fourth. We didn’t give up so I’m proud of the girls for that, but we’ve got to start off games better.”

Flathead went five and a half minutes before scoring its first field goal and trailed 7-4 at the end of the first quarter after Polson’s Malia Hamel drilled a three-pointer to break a 4-all tie.

The Bravettes continued to struggle in the second quarter, forcing passes that led to turnovers and missing when they got good looks at the basket. Turnovers also plagued Polson in the second quarter, but a 6 of 6 showing at the free-throw line helped the Lady Pirates extend their lead to five points by halftime.

Tait couldn’t pinpoint why her team struggled so much in the first half, but it was obvious the coach wasn’t happy with her team’s start.

“It’s tough to say with high school girls, you never know how they’re going to come out,” Tait said. “We didn’t get off to a very good start and Polson came out hard. I have to give them credit for coming out ready to play. We’re lucky that finally by the fourth quarter we pulled it together.”

Davis said trailing at halftime against a Class A school was a blow to her team’s confidence.

“We were very shaken that we were losing to Polson,” she said. “We didn’t start very well. It was scary.”

Russell finished with eight points for the Bravettes while Davis scored seven.

Forward Heidi Rausch led Polson with 10 points before she fouled out with less than a minute remaining in the fourth quarter. DiGiallonardo added nine points for the Pirates.

Flathead was without its tallest player and third leading scorer, 5-foot-11 Jenessa Heine, who suffered a concussion in Tuesday’s win over Columbia Falls.

“Hopefully she’s back this weekend because we go to Helena and we need her,” Tait said. “I think that definitely hurt not having her in there. She brings a lot of intensity to the game and we’ll be happy to have her back when she’s ready to go and cleared to play.”

The Bravettes will return to the hardwood with a pair of conference games at Helena Capital and Helena High Friday and Saturday.

Polson hosts a conference game against Whitefish on Saturday.

Polson 7 12 9 7 — 35

Flathead 4 10 12 18 — 44

POLSON - Heidi Rausch 4-13 2-3 10, Anna DiGiallonardo 2-6 4-6 9, Malia Hamel 1-6 2-2 5, Mackenzie Banner 1-4 2-2 5, Jessica Bagnell 2-2 0-0 4, Hallie Hovenkotter 1-7 0-0 2.

FLATHEAD - Emma Andrews 6-16 2-3 14, Emily Russell 4-8 0-2 8, Dani Davis 3-7 1-4 7, Jessica Simmons 1-3 4-4 6, Jessika Abbrescia 2-3 1-4 5, Tana Fountain 1-8 2-2 4, Payton Pietron 0-2 0-0 0.

3-point goals - Polson 3-7 (Hamel, Banner, DiGiallonardo), Flathead 0-3. Rebounds - Polson 35 (Hovenkotter 8, Rausch 7), Flathead 29 (Russell 6, Abbrescia 5, Simmons 5). Assists - Polson 2 (Hamel, Banner), Flathead 10 (Davis 4, Andrews 2, Fountain 2). Blocks - Polson 0, Flathead 0. Steals - Polson 11 (Bagnell 3, DiGiallonardo 2, Hovenkotter 2), Flathead 15 (Andrews 4, Russell 4, Abbrescia 4, Davis 3). Turnovers - Polson 27, Flathead 19. Team fouls - Polson 16, Flathead 16. Technical fouls - none. Fouled out - Rausch, Abbrescia.