One couldn’t have written a better script or asked for a more dramatic ending.

Tuesday’s backyard scrap between the Jim Thorpe and Lehighton girls basketball teams came down to the final play - and for the Indians, the play arrived at a perfect time in the young season.

With the score tied and time winding down, Lehighton set up a play that called for leading scorer Charli McHugh to be the first option.

But strong defense by the Olympians forced that option to be aborted. McHugh felt the defensive pressure as the final seconds were ticking down.

So McHugh and the Indians went to their second option - Taylor Bowman.

Bowman got the ball and never hesitated. She squared her feet to the basket and let it fly. The shot swished through the net as the buzzer sounded.

Game, set and match, Lehighton.

Bowman’s dramatic bucket gave the Indians a huge 42-39 Schuylkill League Division I victory.

“This is such a rivalry ... what a great win,” said Lehighton coach Joe Berezwick. “We just hung in there despite the way we played early on. It’s such a big win. Hopefully we can build from this.”

As for the pair of players who made the dramatic finish happen, Berezwick wasn’t surprised.

“We call them Batman and Robin,” Berezwick said about McHugh and Bowman. “They’re our captains and they’re our leaders. We want the ball in their hands in that type of situation.”

It didn’t seem like any drama was going to be needed at the game’s outset as Thorpe dug in defensively and made things extremely difficult for Lehighton. The defending Schuylkill League champions blurted to a 13-3 lead behind senior Mackenzie Yuhas, who scored eight of her game-high 20 points in the early getaway.

But suddenly there was an about-face as the Tribe caught fire and the Olympians went into slumber mode. Lehighton started to slow the pace and wormed its way back into the battle.

Oliva Serfass and McHugh began picking up the offensive pieces, and the Indians cut the turnovers down after committing eight in the first quarter. On the other end of the court, the Lehighton defense dug in and forced Thorpe into a cold spell over the next two periods.

“We just can’t take time off,” said Jim Thorpe coach Nadia Gauronsky. “Last year, we could have a bad period, because we had the firepower to come back. But right now, we’re not good enough to take two periods off offensively.”

Lehighton closed to within 18-16 at the half and began to make a charge and surged to a 29-25 lead after three quarters. Bowman and McHugh both tossed in four third-quarter points, while Jordan Haley added in a triple for the hosts.

“We cut down on our mistakes and did a better job of looking for the open man and getting the ball in the right place,” said Berezwick about his team’s rally during the middle periods.

Early in the fourth quarter, Katie Wojton came to the fore for Lehighton, dropping in a huge trey and a bucket to help her team stay in front 38-32 with 3;49 to play.

But Thorpe had some firepower left as it turned to Yuhas and Avery Balliet to pull within 38-37 with 1:34 to play.

After Seafass sank a free throw, the Olympians went to Yuhas, who drove to the iron for the tying bucket with 21 seconds to play.

Berezwick called time with :08 remaining to set the wheels in motion for the final play.

Batman then found Robin and the rest was history.

SHOOTING STARS … Lehighton shot 17-for-45 from the floor with four treys. Jim Thorpe went 15-for-49 with three triples. McHugh’s 13 points led Lehighton, while Haley adding eight. Yuhas pumped in 20 for Thorpe and Gabriella Cinicola added seven.

BOARD WORK ... Both teams had 36 rebounds. Haley led the Tribe with nine, while Yuhas had eight for Thorpe.

SWEEP … Lehighton won the JV game, 39-20, as Releigh Troutman scored 14 point. Kelsey Patton had 12 for Thorpe.

JIM THORPE

Cinicola 3-0-0-7, Hartman 2-0-0-5, Snisky 2-0-0-4, Smelas 1-0-0-3, Robinson 0-0-2-0, Dart 0-0-0-0, K. Patton 0-0-0-0, Yuhas 7-6-6-20. TOTALS: 15-6-8-39.

LEHIGHTON

Serfass 3-1-3-7, McHugh 5-3-8-13, Haley 3-0-0-8, Klotz 0-0-0-0, Uyvari 0-0-2-0, Trotman 1-0-0-2, Bowman 3-0-0-7, Wojton 2-0-2-5, Hauser 0-0-0-0. TOTALS: 17-4-15-42.

Jim Thorpe 14 4 7 14 – 39

Lehighton 6 10 13 13 – 42

Three-pointers: Jim Thorpe - Cinicola 1, Hartman 1, Smelas 1. Lehighton - Haley 2, Bowman 1, Wojton 1.