The visiting Laurel Lady Spartans dropped their fourth straight contest after a hot start to the season, 50-43 to Our Lady of Sacred Heart.

“We’re a veteran team and we need to play through things,” Laurel coach Jessica Shevitz said. “We’ll get there, enjoy Christmas and get back at it. We’ll weather the storm and it’ll make us stronger. All I can say is we’re coming.”

The Lady Spartans (3-4) managed just two points in the first quarter and was forced to play catch up over the final three quarters. Laurel closed to within 22-14 at halftime and 33-29 after three quarters.

“We were coming off a tough game against Mohawk (Thursday) night and we had a long bus ride,” Shevitz said. “Outside of that first quarter, we played fairly well. We were just slow starting off, but we actually outscored them in the second and third quarters.”

Laurel drained three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to keep the game close, but OLSH made 7-of-8 free throws to secure the nonsection victory.

“All of them came at crucial points to get us back in the game,” said Shevitz, whose team connected on 12-of-16 free throws.

Brooke Dicks led the Lady Spartans with six points, seven rebounds and four assists, while Jessica Conrad added eight points and 10 rebounds. Kristin Dicks chipped in four points and three steals.