ROSS TWP — Seneca Valley coach Rob Lombardo talks quite a bit to his team about time.

A full 32-minute effort each game is needed or the Raiders’ season could be out of time.

On Thursday, Seneca Valley saw a double-digit lead nearly slip away, but freshman guard Meghan Hess sank three of four free throws in the final 32 seconds to hold off North Hills 33-30 in a Section 3-AAAA game the Raiders needed to keep their postseason hopes alive.

“North Hills dropped in a couple of big shots,” Lombardo said. “I told the girls one of these nights when we play about 26 minutes, a girl is going to get hot and score.”

The Raiders (9-6, 3-5) scored the first nine points of the second quarter and 15 of the first 17 to take a 20-8 lead with 1:14 left before halftime.

Julia Vandrak came off the bench to bury two 3-pointers and another basket to spark the surge.

The Raiders still held a 24-15 advantage midway through the third period before Carly Herr drained her second 3-pointer of the quarter, then Lea Sullivan hit a jumper and Scout Cheeks a reverse layup to close out the frame on a 7-0 run to make it 24-22.

When Alex Karika scored on a putback and Amanda Geiger followed with a basket, the Raiders took a six-point lead with 6:48 left.

A strong Raiders’ defensive stand milked just a little more than a minute off the clock before Breanna Bertram scored, then a pair of free throws by Herr with 4:18 remaining trimmed the Indians’ deficit to two points.

“Give the North Hills girls credit,” Lombardo said. “The first half, their shots wouldn’t fall.”

Alex Karika, the Raiders’ leading scorer with 18.6 points per game, sank two free throws with 2:35 to play. She would finish with a team-high 12 points.

“North Hills packed into a 2-3 zone area,” Lombardo said. “Wherever Alex went, one girl went high and one girl went low.”

The Indians (3-14, 0-9) pulled to within one point when Herr nailed another 3-pointer with 1:39 remaining and had the chance to take the lead, but a 3-point attempt went out of bounds and the Raiders received the ball.

Hess was fouled on an inbound pass and calmly sank two free throws with 32 seconds left.

“How about that, huh?” Lombardo said with a smile. “A freshman, making her first start and knocking down some big free throws.”

North Hills’ Scout Cheeks was fouled driving in for a layup 10 seconds later and sank one of her two free throws.

Hess, however, was immediately fouled on the inbounds pass and made one, which closed out the scoring.

The Raiders stole a pass by the Indians and Karlei Fronzaglio missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 4.9 seconds left.

The Indians pulled in the rebound and a desperation shot just outside midcourt hit the rim and bounced away as time expired.

A little too close for comfort, as Lombardo knows his team can ill-afford any slip-ups if they are to challenge for the fourth and final playoff berth out of the section.

Seneca Valley is one-half game ahead of Butler and Shaler for fourth place. The Raiders will host the Titans on Monday.

“We have to focus on game situations,” said Lombardo. “Late in the quarters, I think they’re thinking about that break. They need to play in the flow of the game.

“Play every minute like it’s your last,” Lombardo added.

Notes: Seneca Valley defeated North Hills 51-40 on Jan. 2. ... Herr led all scorers with 13 points while Cheeks added nine points.

SENECA VALLEY 33Katie Brown 0 2-2 2, Brooke Clifford 1 0-0 2, Kaitlyn Eagle 0 0-0 0, Karlei Fronzaglio 0 0-1 0, Amanda Geiger 3 0-0 6, Meghan Hess 0 3-4 3, Alex Karika 3 6-7 12, Hannah Parey 0 0-0 0, Julia Vandrak 3 0-0 8.

Totals: 10 11-14 33.

NORTH HILLS 30Scout Cheeks 4 1-6 9, Emily Jamison 0 0-0 0, Carly Herr 4 2-2 13, Lexi Marx 0 0-0 0, Breanna Bertram 1 0-0 2, Kallie Harper 1 0-0 2, Lea Sullivan 2 0-0 4.

Totals: 12 3-8 30.

Seneca Valley 5 15 4 9—33North Hills 6 4 12 8—303-point goals: Seneca Valley 2 (Vandrak 2); North Hills 3 (Herr 3).

JV: North Hills 39, Seneca Valley 29

Sunday: Seneca Valley vs. Quaker Valley at Pittsburgh Classic at Ambridge