The Marian girls were far from sharp at the outset of Tuesday’s Schuylkill League Division 2-3 crossover game.

In fact, the Fillies didn’t look like they’d be a threat at all against visiting Tri-Valley.

But it’s not how you start, but how you finish that creates the end result.

Marian withstood an onslaught of bumps, bruises and tedious moments, before staving off the Bulldogs in a wild 55-47 contest.

The win lifted the Fillies to 10-3 overall, and 4-1 in league play, while Tri-Valley suffered its first league loss and sports an identical 10-3 mark.

“Hey, what else do you expect in a crossover game?” said first-year Marian head coach Damian Fritz, whose club trailed 15-12 after the first quarter. “Sure, it’s a lot fun, a lot of pressure, but that’s the way games are meant to be played, and if you want to be good, you’ve got to stand up and make plays when you need to.”

And did the Fillies ever make plays.

There was sensational shooting by Carly Minchoff, who was nothing short of stellar by collecting a game-high 22 points - which included four three-pointers.

Also, rangy six-footer Fatikha Tikhtova swarmed underneath picking up rebounds while fending off would-be challenges. She would finish with 14 boards, while adding seven points.

And then there was sophomore Frankie Martinelli, who chimed in with 10 points. Toss in the splendid play of Ashley Pleban and Taylor Walsh, both of whom came up big at crucial times to steady the Bulldogs’ late surge, and the result was Marian’s fifth consecutive win.

“We made an early run, then they got us into their (tempo),” said Tri-Valley mentor Clark Romberger. “(Marian) wanted that quick pace, and we wanted the (half-court) game.”

There were anxious moments, though, for the Fillies as a somewhat-comfortable 35-26 third-quarter lead evaporated.

“We just didn’t do a very good job of protecting the basketball,” Fritz said. “That’s something we need to get better at. We need to be more poised in situations like that.”

Tri-Valley came on like block busters, using a tsunami-like rush to take a 41-40 lead. Marian’s Kerrigan Digris ended the period by hitting a three-pointer to put her team back on top, but it was apparent the game was very much in doubt.

“There was a lot of time to play, and I thought we had the momentum,” Romberger said. “But they maintained their poise, and we could never get it back.”

While the situation got a bit sticky for the Fillies, Minchoff eased some nerves with a cannon shot from way beyond the arc to open final quarter.

Still, Tri-Valley wouldn’t fold as it had its share of offensive stars to turn to, which included Meghan Canfield - who poured in 21 points. Faith Colahan added nine points for the visitors, while Grace Header contributed eight.

That trio kept the Dogs within range of overtaking the Fillies, but the combination of Minchoff, Walsh and Tikhtova came up big over the final three minutes to stave off Tri-Valley’s hopes.

COUNT ‘EM UP … Marian collected 38 rebounds, had 24 turnovers and shot 22-of-47. Tri-Valley had 22 rebounds and 16 turnovers, while shooting 17-of-46.

UP NEXT ... The Fillies are off until next Monday when they host Lourdes.

TRI-VALLEY

Canfield 7-1-2-21, F. Colahan 3-2-2-9, Header 4-0-0-8, H. Colahan 1-2-2-5, Snyder 2-0-2-4, Raulston 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 17-5-8-47.

MARIAN

Minchoff 8-2-4-22, Martinelli 4-1-1-10, F. Tikhtova 4-0-2-8, Walsh 2-1-2-7, Digris 1-0-0-3, Pleban 1-1-2-3, Lombardo 0-0-0-0, Corrado 1-0-1-2. TOTALS: 21-5-12-55.

Tri-Valley 15 9 7 6 - 47

Marian 12 17 14 12 - 55

Three-pointers: Tri-Valley - Canfield 6, F. Colahan 1, H. Colahan 1; Marian - Minchoff 4, Walsh 2, Martinelli 1, Digris 1.