ST. NICHOLAS — Who put that lid on the basket?

The Mid Peninsula boys and girls may be asking themselves that after dropping both ends of a non-conference basketball doubleheader to the Engadine Eagles here Monday night.

Engadine’s boys hung on for a 34-27 victory, and its girls won 44-28.

Mid Pen’s boys shot 21 percent from the field, and the girls hit just 15 percent of their shots.

The Engadine boys led 36-21 after junior Drew French drained a set shot from near the free throw line with four minutes, 55 seconds left in the contest.

Mid Pen responded with a 10-0 run, trimming its deficit to 32-27 on a 21-foot jump shot by freshman Bradley VanDamme with 2:30 remaining.

Engadine senior Rodney Bigelow then sealed the verdict with a pair of free throws with 28.6 seconds left.

“I wish our offense would look halfway decent,” said Mid Pen coach Mark Branstrom. “We’re off and on. Our offense isn’t in sync yet, although it’s nice to see the guys know how to play defense. We have five games under our belt. We’re not really a young team anymore.”

Mid Pen (1-4) was within 14-9 after VanDamme sank a floater from the lane with 5:34 left in the second quarter.

The Eagles (2-1) answered with a 7-0 run, taking a 21-9 advantage on a putback by French.

Mid Pen came within 24-17 on a putback by VanDamme with 1:51 left in the third stanza.

Sophomore Mikka Luoto then gave Engadine a 26-17 cushion with a fast break layup at 1:03.

Engadine began the fourth with a 6-0 run before junior A.J. Richmond’s 12-foot floater from the right baseline started Mid Pen’s comeback.

“They hit a couple deep 3s, and all of a sudden, it was a different game down the stretch,” said Engadine coach Ty Elenbaas. “Fortunately, a couple seniors helped us keep our composure. For most of the game, we kept the ball in front of us, and I’m proud of the way they kept battling. These are the kinds of games that reinforce the things you have to get better at. Our guys did a good job looking for the other guys in the paint. We like being 2-1, but we have a lot of work to do.”

VanDamme scored 14 points for the Wolverines, who hit 11-of-53 field goals and committed 10 turnovers. French led the Eagles with 14 points, and Luoto had 12.

“It was a well-played game that way,” said Branstrom. “We took good care of the ball. We’re still not that good at boxing out, but we’re learning game by game.”

The Eagles hit 14-of-42 field goals and committed 17 turnovers.

Mid Pen hosts Republic-Michigamme Friday. Engadine hosts DeTour tonight.

Engadine 12 9 5 8 — 34

Mid Peninsula 7 5 5 10 — 27

Engadine — Bigelow 2, Luoto 12, Hanselman 1, French 14, Nance 5. FT: 4-9; F: 10; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Luoto 2.

Mid Peninsula — VanDamme 14, Richmond 2, Lofquist 3, McNally 4, Cretens 4. FT:2-6; F: 8; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: VanDamme 2, Temple.

The Mid Pen girls were within 13-10 following a steal and layup by senior guard Daisy Englund with 4:54 left in the second quarter.Engadine then pushed its lead to 19-10 on senior Leah French’s set shot from the lane with 63 seconds before halftime.

A pair of free throws by junior Landry Koski got the Wolverines within 19-12 with 36.9 seconds left in the second frame.

French then drained a buzzer-beating jumper from top of the key for a 22-12 halftime advantage.

A pair of gifters by Englund got Mid Pen within 24-16 early in the third. The Wolverines, however, didn’t get any closer as Engadine extended its lead to 37-18 on a free throw by junior Skyler White with 54 seconds remaining in the third.

Mid Pen, which hit just 8-of-52 field goals, got no closer than 15 points in the fourth.

“I’m trying different combinations to see what works before (Division 4) districts,” said Mid Pen coach Phil Croasdell. “The girls played hard. I thought our defense was good, only we didn’t box out very well. Leah (French) is a good player. She shot well.”

French finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Senior Kearra Paquin, who sank 7-of-14 shots, added 16 points and 14 boards, and junior sister Tessa Paquin grabbed 11 boards. Sophomore Lauren King collected five steals.

“It was good to come here and get some confidence,” said Engadine coach Roger French. “We knew Englund and Koski were their two leading players, and (Imani) Miller and (Camille) Crandall did a good job on them. Leah and Kearra are go-getters. Kearra sets up her shots well.

“Defensively, we did real good in this game. We didn’t give them many second shots. I think the girls did a real good job mentally preparing for this game.”

Englund and Koski scored seven points each for the Wolverines, who committed 25 turnovers. The Eagles were 14-of-42 from the field and had 19 miscues.

The Wolverines visit North Central Thursday. The Eagles host Rudyard Thursday.

Engadine 11 11 15 7 — 44

Mid Peninsula 5 7 6 10 — 28

Engadine — King 5, K. Paquin 16, French 19, White 1, Miller 1, T. Paquin 2. FT: 9-21; F: 19; Fouled out: Crandall, French; 3-point field goals: French 3.

Mid Peninsula — Johnson 3, Englund 7, Koski 7, Lampinen 3, Lancour 3, Croasdell 2, Salmi 2. FT: 10-27; F: 14; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Lampinen, Johnson.