HERMON – In each of the last two seasons, Ellsworth waited at least three games to earn its first victory.

This year, the Eagles will try to build on an opening-game win.

Nick Johnston connected for 22 points and Ryan Conley hit the game-winning free throw with 2.9 seconds left, lifting Ellsworth to a 49-48 Class B victory over Hermon.

“We needed to win this first game, because the past two years we’ve started off with 0-3, 0-4 records and this first one was a big one,” Johnston said.

Coach Dan Clifford’s Eagles overcame 21 turnovers and a 7-for-17 effort from the foul line against Hermon, which hung close.

Scott Smith rallied the Hawks, slashing the deficit to 48-46 on a four-point play with 2:39 left. He nailed a 3-pointer, was fouled after the shot, and made the front end.

Chris Gray sank two free throws to make it 48-48 with 1:59 left and Hermon regained possession on a turnover. The Hawks worked the clock down until Conley rebounded a missed 3-pointer by Smith with 2.9 seconds remaining.

Hermon called timeout, but Conley made the front end of a 1-and-1 to give the Eagles the margin of victory. Ryan Scripture’s desperation, half-court 3-point attempt glanced off the rim at the buzzer.

Ellsworth clogged up the middle with a 2-3 zone, which was designed to combat Hermon’s height advantage.

“We wanted them to beat us from outside and really try to pinch it in because the big guy, Gray, had 21 points at our place last year,” Clifford said of the 6-foot-8 center.

The Hawks responded with 17-for-74 (23 percent) shooting.

“I thought we played pretty well,” said Hermon coach Clayton Blood. “I thought we just didn’t put the ball in the basket. We had some easy shots underneath.”

Beb Donaldson provided eight points and eight rebounds for Ellsworth. Seltzer added eight points and Rick Cochrane had six boards.

Smith scored a game-high 23 points and chipped in with nine rebounds, four assists and two steals for Hermon. Rhett Bartlett contributed 11 points and eight rebounds and Gray had 11 rebounds.

Hermon scored the first seven points of the game, but failed to put the ball in the basket for the next seven minutes, 55 seconds. During that span, Ellsworth turned a 10-3 deficit into a 20-10 lead.

“Nick hit a couple threes in a row, made a couple plays, and got us back in it,” Clifford said. “Then you could see the confidence of the team go up because of his performance.”

Johnston, a speedy guard, buried three 3-pointers during the 17-0 burst, giving the Eagles the edge. His first ignited the run, and Mike Seltzer answered a 3-pointer by Hermon’s Jake St. Louis with a 10-foot jumper.

Johnston’s second 3-pointer and Conley’s 16-footer got the Eagles into an offensive rhythm. Ellsworth then converted three consecutive Hermon turnovers into points, including 3-pointers by Johnston and Seltzer, and a steal and layup by Ben Donaldson.

“I told the kids I’ve been here a year and a game, and that’s the best basketball that we’ve played in a year and a game, the first quarter,” Clifford said. “We pushed the basketball and we got a lot of fast-break easy baskets.”

Ellsworth suffered through a 6 1/2-minute drought of its own in the first half and committed 16 turnovers, but never allowed the Hawks to retake the lead.

Eagles 49, Hawks 48

Ellsworth (1-0) Hermon (0-1)

Name G AG F AF TP Name G AG F AF TP

Johnston 8 19 2 4 22 St. Louis 1 5 0 0 3

Seltzer 3 7 0 0 8 Garland 2 11 0 0 4

Alley 0 0 0 0 0 Gray 1 12 3 6 5

Donaldson 3 3 2 4 8 Smith 8 21 3 5 23

Conley 1 4 1 3 3 Bartlett 4 10 3 6 11

Sirois 0 1 0 0 0 Cox 0 4 0 0 0

McDonald 1 3 0 0 2 Scripture 0 3 0 0 0

Garreans 0 3 2 4 2 Wyman 1 7 0 0 2

Lindsay 1 4 0 1 2 Dobbins 0 1 0 0 0

Salsbury 0 1 0 0 0

Cochrane 1 1 0 1 2

Totals 18 46 7 17 49 Totals 17 74 9 17 48

Ellsworth 20 25 37 49

Hermon 10 24 33 48

3-pt. goals: Ellsworth (5-26): Cox 0-3, Scripture 0-2, Wyman 0-2, St. Louis 1-4, Garland 0-4, Smith 4-11; Hermon (6-16): Johnston 4-9, Seltzer 2-4, Lindsay 0-3

Preliminary: Ellsworth JVs 63, Hermon 52