The Laurel High girls basketball team couldn’t dig out of an early hole last night.

Riverside built a 12-point first-quarter lead and cruised to a 60-38 WPIAL Section 2-AA victory over the Lady Spartans.

The Lady Panthers (2-0 section, 5-0 overall) raced to an 18-6 lead after the first quarter and held a 31-10 buffer at the break.

Riverside is ranked No. 3 in the WPIAL in Class AA by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

“It’s very difficult to come back from that kind of deficit,” first-year Lady Spartans coach Jessica Shevitz said. “They’re big, fast and strong and we didn’t have anything to match that.”

Marisa Wallas netted a team-high 12 points for Laurel (1-1, 1-3).

Sam Weir recorded a game-high 21 markers for the Lady Panthers.

“Weir is a heck of a player,” Shevitz said. “We couldn’t match their size. We were slow and we didn’t have enough gas.”

Despite the lopsided loss, Shevitz noted bright spots.

“They’re not quitting and they’re playing with a lot of heart,” she said of her team. “That’s great to see.”