PLUMBORO— Butler turned the ball over, then got turned away.

The Golden Tornado took a 34-32 lead into the fourth quarter of their WPIAL Class AAAA girls basketball tournament game against Latrobe Monday night.

That lead vanished as Butler (17-7) turned the ball over six times in its first seven possessions of the final period, and the Tornado never got it back as Latrobe rallied for a 45-42 victory.

"We gave away too many possessions. You can't do that — certainly not at this time of year,"Butler coach Dorothea Epps said.

The score was tied six times and the lead changed hands four times. The biggest lead either team ever had was seven when Latrobe led 20-13 with 7:40 left in the third quarter.

Butler's biggest lead was 32-26 after Liz Schultz sank a layup off an assist from Amy Achesinski with 1:15 left in the same quarter. That bucket capped a 19-6 Tornado run.

But Butler couldn't maintain it.

After suffering only nine turnovers through three quarters, Butler turned the ball over eight times in the fourth period.

"This game was so intense from start to finish,"Latrobe coach Greg Fenton said. "You really do hate to see either team eliminated in a game like this."

Latrobe's Natalie Ferrari scored in transition following a Butler turnover early in the final quarter to knot the game at 34. Two free throws by Lindsey Muchnock handed the Wildcats a 36-34 lead with 6:36 to play.

The lead reached four points before an Achesinski three-point play cut the gap to 38-37. Emily Fenton sank a layup for Latrobe, and the Wildcats' final five points came at the foul line.

"Foul trouble hurt them because we got into the double bonus early,"Coach Fenton said. "We knocked down just enough free throws to hold them off."

Fenton sank two free throws with 11.9 seconds to play, giving the Wildcats (18-6) a 45-39 advantage. Achesinski drained a trey — the lone 3-point goal of the night for either team — just before the buzzer.

Achesinski led all players with 24 points and 10 rebounds. She ended her prep career with 1,525 points, good for third place on the program's all-time scoring list.

No other Tornado player scored more than seven points Monday.

Butler played without guard Maria Baroffio, the team's leading 3-point shooter and second-best scorer, who injured a knee during a scrimmage Saturday. She was scheduled to have an MRItoday.

"I can't use Maria's absence as an excuse," Epps said. "I'm disappointed that we didn't play with more confidence shooting the basketball. We had a lot of good looks and missed a lot of layups because the confidence wasn't there."

The Tornado had a 30-18 edge on the boards. Schultz had five rebounds before fouling out with 1:11 remaining.

Muchnock had 16 points and Fenton had 13 for Latrobe, which won its first playoff game since 1999.

"Amy (Achesinski) is a great, great player,"Coach Fenton said. "We collapsed all around her all night and she still got 24 points.

"We knew down the stretch, once we got the lead, they were going to try to force the ball in to her. Their other girls didn't want to step up and shoot the ball, and that hurt them," he added.

Latrobe faces Bethel Park in the next round. Butler gets ready for next year and says goodbye to seniors Achesinski, Baroffio, Schultz and Rachel Barry.

"We'll sorely miss them because they are four of the hardest working girls to come through this program,"Epps said. "I feel badly for Maria that she didn't get a chance to be in the playoffs."

LATROBE 45Courtney Sherwin 4-6 0-1 8, Emily Fenton 4-12 5-7 13, Emily Fedor 0-1 0-0 0, Natalie Ferrari 2-5 4-6 8, Lindsey Muchnock 6-9 4-6 16, Courtney Zitt 0-1 0-0 0, Emily Wood 0-0 0-0 0.

Totals: 16-34 13-20 45

BUTLER 42Rachel Barry 1-3 5-7 7, Olivia Bresnahan 3-6 1-2 7, Liz Schultz 1-2 0-0 2, Amy Achesinski 10-20 3-3 24, Erica Miller 0-1 0-0 0, Karissa King 0-3 0-0 0, Jenna Manuel 1-5 0-0 2, Kayla Gilliland 0-2 0-0 0.

Totals: 16-42 9-12 42

Latrobe 6 12 14 13—45Butler 8 5 21 8—423-point goal: Achesinski