TRUCKEE, Calif. and#8212; Everything was going just fine for the home team until Emily Byrne caught fire.

After the host Wolverines led for much of Wednesday’s nonleague contest, the Damonte Ranch senior guard heated up in the second half and began draining 3-point buckets regularly. By the time the final buzzer sounded she had amassed a game-high 26 points on eight 3-pointers as the Mustangs pulled away for a 61-48 win.

and#8220;Foul trouble killed us,and#8221; said Truckee head coach Caroline Bechdolt. and#8220;We had three or four fouls on several of our guards. Megan (Shalvis) had four. And then she (Byrne) started hitting threes. We were getting lazy on defense, letting her take that shot.and#8221;

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Byrne took full advantage, hitting four of her eight 3-point shots in the final quarter, when the fresher-legged Mustangs outscored the Wolverines 26-11.

and#8220;We have a lot of catch-up to do as far as conditioning,and#8221; Bechdolt said.

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Truckee (4-5 overall) looked sharp early, running out to a 16-10 lead by the end of the first quarter with aggressive defense that led directly to offense. The Wolverines maintained the pace through three quarters, as they led 26-24 at the half and 37-35 at the end of the third.

But it was all Damonte Ranch (2-2) in the fourth as the visitors began creating steals with a full-court press and converting the turnovers into easy layups.

It didn’t help that Shalvis, Truckee’s senior point guard and leading scorer, sat on the bench with foul trouble late in the game. When Shalvis did return to the lineup to give her team a late boost, she was injured by an accidental elbow to the side of the head by Alexa Rubenau.

and#8220;The girls worked super hard, to the point where they were tired,and#8221; Bechdolt said, looking at the positives from the game. and#8220;As long as they do that they’ll have a great season.and#8221;

Senior guard Aly Coronado-Smith led the Wolverines with 16 points. Sydnie English contributed 13 points and Aleigh Krug 11. Ciara O’Driscoll scored 13 for Damonte Ranch, while Byrne made eight of her 11 attempts from beyond the arc.