ESCANABA — The top-ranked Escanaba girls continued to roll here Tuesday night, clinching at least a share of the Great Northern Conference basketball title in a 69-42 triumph over the Kingsford Flivvers.

Esky, which improved to 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the GNC, trailed early before surging to a 22-11 lead after the first quarter.

The Flivvers were within 26-15 following a layup by junior Mia Counter two minutes into the second quarter.

Esky answered with a 14-2 run, gaining a 40-17 advantage on a layup by junior forward Keira Maki moments before halftime.

“They attacked us, but I thought we got into our tempo in the first quarter,” said Esky coach Tracy Hudson. “We wanted to pressure them and pick up the tempo. I thought we would see some 2-3 zone from them. Once we got into it, we got rolling. We got a lot of girls playing time. When you can win a share of the conference and everybody can get a piece of the action, it’s a good feeling.”

Counter’s second layup shaved Kingsford’s deficit to 42-23 early in the third frame.

The Eskymos responded with an 8-0 run, gaining a 51-23 cushion on a lay-in by Maki with three minutes left in the third.

Senior forward Mari Bink gave the Eskymos a 55-27 advantage on a pair of free throws with 84 seconds remaining in the third.

Kingsford finished the third with a 6-0 run, but still trailed 55-33 following sophomore Anna Bortolini’s steal and layup.

The Eskymos didn’t allow the Flivvers to get any closer in the fourth as they extended their lead to 65-36 on a 20-foot jumper from the right wing by senior guard Carney Salo midway through the quarter.

Keira Maki led the Eskymos with 19 points, four assists and four blocked shots. Bink added 15 points and Salo collected 13 points and four assists. Sophomore center Grayson LaMarche and sophomore guard Kaey Lamb had three assists apiece.

“I thought we were prepared to attack their press, but didn’t attack it very well,” said Kingsford coach Jon Lorenzoni. “They’re a good team. They’re 15-0 for a reason. They’re a very well coached team.”

Junior Alaina Kowalski scored 14 points for the Flivvers (7-8 overall, 2-3 GNC), who host Marquette Friday.

The Flivvers committed 12 turnovers and the Eskymos had 11.

“I thought the beat us off the dribble in the first quarter,” said Hudson. “I think we need to keep people in front of us on dribble drives. We still need to work on our rebounding. We just need to get a little better in practice. I thought we shared the ball well and Mari stepped up nicely from the perimeter. I’m real happy with our three leaders. We also had good bench play.”

Esky, which also won the jayvee game 60-27, hosts fourth-ranked Calumet Friday.

“That should be an exciting game,” said Hudson. “We need a battle. Win or lose it should help us.”

The Eskymos, who hadn’t played a full game in more than two weeks, picked up where they left off in a 65-45 non-conference victory at Gwinn Monday night.

Esky trailed 12-10 after the first quarter, but led 23-16 at halftime.

Bink led the Eskymos with 19 points. Keira Maki hit 16 and Morgan Maki had 13.

Lena Pleaugh scored 26 for the Modeltowners (5-10), who sank 11-of-12 free throws.

The Eskymos were 13-of-19 from the line.

Kingsford 11 6 16 9 — 42

Escanaba 22 18 15 14 — 69

Kingsford — Counter 6, Kowalski 14, Bracket 6, Malone 2, Briseno 2, A. Bortolini 5, E. Bortolini 7. FT: 6-10; F: 8; Fouled out: None.

Escanaba — Henderson 3, K. Maki 19, Bink 15, Stahlboerger 6, Salo 13, M. Maki 7, LaMarche 2, Lamb 4. FT: 10-12; F: 11; Fouled out: None; 3-point field goals: Bink 3, Salo 2, M. Maki.