Maple Grove’s Claire Price drives to the basket during Wednesday’s Section VI Class C prequarterfinal playoff game against Gowanda. P-J photo by Matt Spielman

ELLERY — Maple Grove took the lead early, but never led by more than nine, and held off every push by Gowanda en route to a 51-43 Section VI Class C prequarterfinal victory Wednesday evening at Maple Grove Jr.-Sr. High School.

Rebekka Roberts led the seventh-seeded Red Dragons with 16 points and Alex Halstrom had 15 points, while Claire Price chipped in 10.

A bucket from Roberts late in the first quarter gave the hosts an 18-10 lead after eight minutes.

The 10th-seeded Panthers got back-to-back 3-pointers from C.C. John and Marissa Beaver early in the second quarter to make it a 20-16 game, but Price answered with a 3-pointer of her own to extend the Maple Grove lead.

John, who led Gowanda with a game-high 26 points, hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 23-all with 37 seconds remaining in the second quarter, but Halstrom hit a 3-pointer — one of her five in the game — with 8 seconds left to give the Red Dragons a 26-23 lead at halftime.

The Panthers pulled to within a point twice in the third quarter, but Maple Grove maintained a four-point advantage heading into the final eight minutes.

The Red Dragons scored the first five points of the fourth quarter to lead by nine, but Gowanda wouldn’t go away. A 3-pointer from John made it 44-40 with 3:57 remaining and she hit another one just over two minutes later to make it 47-43, but the Panthers missed their final four shots and turned the ball over twice down the stretch as Maple Grove held on.

Next up for the Red Dragons is a quarterfinal date at No. 2 Randolph on Friday at 7 p.m.

NOTES: Maple Grove shot 20 of 58 from the field, including 9 of 27 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over 16 times. Roberts had nine rebounds, Morgan Caldwell had eight and Halstrom had seven. Price had seven steals and Morgan Caldwell had six. … Gowanda shot 16 of 69 from the field, including 9 of 42 from 3-point range, and turned the ball over 15 times.

GOWANDA (43)

CJohn 10 0 26, Gamble 2 0 6, Beaver 2 0 5, Wilder 1 2 4, Gabel 1 0 2, Valentine 0 0 0, Giambrone 0 0 0, Graham 0 0 0. Totals 16 2 43.

MAPLE GROVE (51)

Trim 2 0 4, MCaldwell 2 1 6, Halstrom 5 0 15, ACaldwell 0 0 0, Roberts 7 0 16, Price 4 1 10. Totals 20 2 51.

3-point goals–CJohn 6, Gamble 2, Beaver, MCaldwell, Halstrom 5, Roberts 2, Price.

Gowanda 10 13 10 10 — 43

Maple Grove 18 8 11 14 — 51