AUBURN — Just when it got too close for comfort, Edward Little’s size mattered.

Playing against a predominantly taller Bangor team, the Red Eddies only had one player that could matchup with the collection of 6-footers on the roster. But when senior center Crissy Lewis scored three field goals in the final quarter it made a sizable difference as EL pulled away for a 58-49 win.

Bangor had cut the lead to two points late in the third. Lewis opened the fourth quarter with a pair of baskets in the paint. After a Bangor free throw, she scored again in the post and quickly had the lead up to 46-37.

“I knew to help the team; I had to step up my game,” said Lewis. “I had to do what I can do. I used the height against them and was able to go to the basket and find a way to go through them.”

EL had just three field goals in the final quarter, all from Lewis. After swinging the momentum back in their favor, the Red Eddies finished the job with free throws down the stretch. Bangor got within 48-44 with 2:17 left, but EL sank 10 free throws in the final two minutes, shooting 10-for-14 in the final quarter.

“They only had three field goals in the fourth quarter, but they had a lot of foul shots,” said Bangor coach Katie Herbine.

Ashlee Arnold led EL (4-2) with 22 points while Lewis finished with 12. Brooke Reynolds added 11. Bangor (3-4) got 13 from Denae Johnson and 10 each from Jordan Seekins and Mary Butler.

EL built an 18-point lead by the second quarter. Arnold led the way with 16 in the first half.  Bangor was plagued by 17 turnovers in the first half while shooting 7-for-23 from the floor.

“We just have to play in the first quarter,” said Herbine, whose team was ranked fifth in the Eastern A standings. “We can’t come out and play flat. You just can’t do that.”

Bangor had trimmed the lead down to 31-20 with a 10-3 run to end the half. Then the Rams opened the third with a 9-2 run to get within 33-29. Though EL did a nice job not turning the ball over in the first half,  the Red Eddies struggled to get the offense flowing in the second half, shooting 6-for-26. Lewis had four of those field goals.

“Crissy played great,” said EL coach Craig Jipson, whose team was in 10th in Eastern A. “I don’t think she came out in the second half. She played great down the stretch.”

EL shot 1-for-15 to start the third, and the only field goal to that point was a basket by Lewis in the post. A free throw by Reynolds and a jumper by Norcross made it 36-29, but Bangor came back with a 7-2 run. A jumper by Seekins and a basket by Cordelia Stewart had the lead down to 38-36 with 35 seconds left in the third.

Norcross scored in the closing seconds with a baseline shot, making it 40-36.

“We knew it was OK,” said Lewis. “We worked really hard to get here and put in four days of practice. I knew we could come through. We’re a really good foul shooting team, and that would be important. I just needed to calm down and settle down.”

With 6-foot center Katie Brochu nursing four fouls and EL’s inability to hit the outside shot, the Red Eddies looked inside to Lewis.

“Coach (Elaine) Derosby and coach (Bill) Walton were yelling to get it inside to her,” said  Jipson. “We needed to pound it in because Brochu had four fouls and we had gone forever without a basket.”

Lewis scored on a rebound to start the fourth. She then converted a nifty pass from Tianna Harriman to make it 44-36 with 5:57 left. She scored again moments later for a 46-37 lead with 4:37 remaining.

Bangor’s momentum was suddenly halted, and EL had its footing again. The Rams tried to rally and got within 48-44 on a pair of Johnson baskets. Arnold hit six foul shots down the stretch while Harriman, Kate Sawyer, and Emily Hartnett all sank free throws to pad the lead.

“Bangor is a good and talented team with a lot of size,” said Jipson. “I thought we showed a lot of character to come out with a win.”