GWINN — Sophomore Lauren Zawada provided the Bark River-Harris Broncos with a much-needed spark here Saturday night, helping them overcome adversity in a 58-45 basketball triumph over the Gwinn Modeltowners.

Zawada scored seven of her career-high 21 points in the first quarter of this non-conference contest, including an eight-foot jump shot to give the Broncos a 10-9 lead after eight minutes.

The Broncos, playing without two starters, trailed by nine points after senior Jordana Hardy scored on a lay-in with 4:35 left in the opening frame.

“Lauren got us going when we were really struggling,” said BR-H coach Matt Richer. “She gave us a spark when we really needed a spark. Gwinn came out real aggressive, and with two starters missing, it looked like our girls didn’t know who was going to shoot. Then, we called a time-out, and they settled down.”

The Modeltowners regained the lead on a four-foot jumper by Hardy early in the second.

BR-H then surged to an 18-11 lead on a steal and layup by senior Alaska Peterson midway through the second.

A set shot from the lane and free throw by senior Grace Anderson brought Gwinn within 18-16 with 2:36 remaining in the second.

The Broncos then finished the second with a 9-0 run, gaining a 27-16 halftime cushion on a 15-foot jumper by sophomore Nina Bower.

BR-H took a 32-20 advantage on Peterson’s set shot from top of the key with 3:20 remaining in the third.

The Modeltowners responded by trimming their deficit to 32-27 on Anderson’s 14-foot set shot at 2:09.

Gwinn was still within 35-29 following a six-foot set shot by Anderson with 10 seconds left in the third.

Zawada answered with a 10-foot jumper, and Peterson added a 20-foot jumper for a 40-29 cushion early in the fourth.

Gwinn was within 45-37 after junior Lena Pleaugh split a pair of free throws with 3:40 remaining.

The Broncos then surged to an insurmountable 53-37 advantage on a pair of gifters by Peterson at 1:51.

Peterson finished with 15 points, including 10 in the final eight minutes.

“I called time-out and took Alaska out of the game for a little while,” said Richer. “I told her we needed her to shoot the ball. She’s a better player than she realizes. We’re a better team when she looks at the basket and shoots the ball.”

Senior Tressa Ives added eight points, and Bower had six for the Broncos, who hit 22-of-57 field goals and committed 16 turnovers. Senior Olivia Erickson collected three steals.

“This was Tressa’s first career start,” said Richer. “She was guarding their best player and looked more comfortable out there tonight. Nina, who’s from our JV team, just knows how to play, and No. 24 (Pleaugh) is a good player for them. She was working real hard till the end.”

The Broncos played without senior Cara Zawacki, who broke a knuckle on her non-shooting hand, and sophomore Mckenzie Hoffmeyer was in Texas on vacation.

Pleaugh finished with 19 points, and Anderson had nine.

“Lena is our quarterback,” said first-year Gwinn coach Justin Maki. “She’s good at leading by example. Grace has been battling a foot injury, but looked good tonight. I think she’s going to be one of our leading scorers. There’s a lot of little things we need to clean up on defense. With No. 13 (Cara Zawada) out, we knew (Aspen) Fredrick was going to be their go-to girl. We wanted to make somebody else beat us and held her to three points. Unfortunately, somebody else did beat us.”

Both teams were cold from the free throw line, with Gwinn hitting 9-of-19 and BR-H going 10-for-23.

The Modeltowers ended with 21 turnovers.

“We definitely have to work on moving the ball,” said Maki. “We’re going to be a work in progress for a while. Although, the girls play hard. We played three good quarters tonight, only you have to play four good quarters to win.”

BR-H, which also won the JV game 44-18, hosts Norway tonight. Gwinn visits Manistique tonight.

BR-Harris 10 17 8 23 — 58

Gwinn 9 7 13 16 — 45

 Bark River-Harris — Fredrick 3, Bower 6, Peterson 15, L. Zawada 21, Ives 8. Erickson 5. FT: 10-23; F: 18; Fouled out: None.

 Gwinn — LaCount 5, Hardy 4, Pleaugh 19, Spencer 6, Paquin 2, Anderson 9. FT: 9-19; F: 18; Fouled out: Hardy, Anderson.