The Lake City 56ers couldn’t miss early.
Fredericton Freeze couldn’t hit early.
It appeared to spell doom for the hometown Freeze on Sunday afternoon in front of a raucous crowd at the Lady Beaverbrook Gymnasium.
Cue the comeback.
Fredericton roared back in an emotional and physical encounter to snap the 56ers’ six-game win streak with a 65-61 victory.
In the process, the Freeze put an end to a two-game losing skid.
Fredericton moved to 4-3 and sole possession of third place. Lake City sits 6-2, remained tied with the 6-0 Halifax Thunder atop the standings.
Rookie Bailey Russell beat the buzzer at the end of the third quarter for a critical three-point to close the deficit to 51-50 at that point, igniting the Freeze’s slumbering offence.
Russell would finish with a team high 14 points. Katie Daley added 13 and Amanda Russell sunk 10.
Elizabeth Iseyemi powered Lake City with 21 points. Courtney Donaldson and Lillian Fuller had a dozen apiece.
– Eva Tumwine catches some air during Fredericton’s win. (Fran Harris Photo)