JACKSON TWP — With the game on the line, put the ball in the hands of your best player.

Seneca Valley girls basketball coach Kelly Mathews believed in that strategy.

And it paid off.

With the Raiders trailing visiting Fox Chapel 43-42 and with fewer than 30 seconds to play, the team got the ball to senior guard Kelsey Spencer at the top of the key.

Spencer drained the 3-pointer with 24 seconds to play and the Raiders held on for a 45-43 non-section victory Monday night.

With 50 seconds left in the game, Fox Chapel's Veronica Badway put her team up 43-42 with a 2-pointer.

Spencer's shot came 26 seconds later.

Spencer entered the game as SV's leading scorer at 13.1 points per game. Her game-winning 3-pointer gave her 10 points in Monday's contest.

"If she didn't have a good look from the top of the key, we were going to have her come off a screen and see what we could get off the dribble," said Mathews. "She's our best player and I told her that if I could, I'd put the ball in her hands 10 out of 10 times."

The Foxes (4-11) had a chance to get off a potential game-winning shot of their own, but a turnover ended their hopes.

Fox Chapel was without the services of senior guard Catlyn Kriston, who suffered a knee injury in December.

At the time of her injury, Kriston led the Foxes with 16 points per game, five rebounds and five assists.

Despite losing Monday's game, the Foxes showed promise without their leader on the floor.

The team featured four players with at least eight points and it led for much of the fourth quarter.

Sara D'Amico led Fox Chapel with 13 points.

"This was the most complete effort we've had in the six games since Catlyn's injury," said Foxes coach Jeremy Bennett. "The difference was somebody for (SV) stepped up and hit a shot. But our girls brought a lot of emotion to the floor."

Seneca Valley (11-5) held modest leads of 8-6 and 32-30 after the first and third quarter, respectively. And the game was tied at halftime at 21-all.

The game was filled with turnovers, with SV committing 27 and Fox Chapel with 25.

"We need to learn how to pass and catch the ball," Mathews said, laughing. "We had balls going off the feet of our players. ... We couldn't seem to do anything right."

Junior forward Jackie Mangola scored a game-high 14 points, including a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line.

The Raiders won the battle for rebounds, 30-23.

FOX CHAPEL 43Veronica Badway 3 2-2 8, Heidi Goeller 4 1-2 9, Sara D'Amico 4 3-3 13, Jenny Papich 3 4-4 10, Angelica Tedesco 0 1-2 1, Holly Bourquin 1 0-0 2, Molly Sheerer 0 0-0 0, Lauren Kolod 0 0-0 0, Nikki Spina 0 0-0 0.

Totals: 15 11-13 43.

SENECA VALLEY 45Aly Eagle 1 1-1 3, Megan Gebrosky 0 2-4 2, Kelsey Spencer 4 0-2 10, Kelsey Patsilevas 1 0-0 3, Amanda Johnson 3 2-2 8, Jackie Mangola 4 6-6 14, Catherine Messmer 0 5-6 5.

Totals: 13 16-21 45.

Fox Chapel 6 15 9 13—43Seneca Valley 8 13 11 13—453-point goals: Fox Chapel 2 (D'Amico 2); Seneca Valley 3 (Spencer 2, Patsilevas)

Thursday: Seneca Valley at Pine-Richland