SOUTH HADLEY - Paul Dubuc knew his South Hadley girls basketball team had to use its speed to neutralize its lack of size against Taconic.

A fast-paced up-and-down start and an early run set the tone, fueling a 60-45 win for the Tigers Wednesday night.

"We try to turn our defense into offense," Dubuc said. "We press, we don't have any size. ... We don't worry too much if the other team does score either we just want to get the pace hectic so we can use our depth and get out and run."

Sophomore guard Kelly Pouliot (16 points) and junior forward Megan Lynes (13 points) led the way for the South Hadley (7-6).

Point guard Kara Callahan also chipped in with nine points and demonstrated a relentless up-tempo style from that position. Callahan took advantage of several Taconic miscues by pushing the ball up the court and heading straight to the basket. Pouliot and Lynes often benefited from that push, filling in the lanes seamlessly, giving them easy looks at the basket throughout the game.

The fast moving first quarter opened with each team struggling to hold on to the ball. After a few minutes in though, the Tigers got out of their own way and got some easy buckets as a result of Taconic's continued inability to take care of the basketball.

The Braves (4-10), who had a significant size advantage at the forward positions, were unable to take advantage early on. What was a concerted effort to get the ball inside proved unsuccessful, as easy chances under the hoop either rimmed out or fell short, helping the Tiger offense get out and run every chance they had.

The Tigers never let up and pressed for much of the second quarter, taking an 18-5 lead with 4 minutes, 43 seconds left. The Braves fought back and pulled within 19-13 with just under three minutes to play in the second quarter. Taconic's Angela O'Neil was one of the contributors during the 8-1 run. O'Neil sank a 3-pointer then completed a three-point play after slicing through the lane and nailing a runner.

The Tigers went on a run of their own after one of Janelle Seitz' three 3-pointers pushed the lead back to nine and a couple of Braves' turnovers led to two lay-ups for South Hadley, which led 28-17 at the half.

The second half brought much of the same as the Tigers kept the pressure on and forced the Braves to cough up the ball, with Callahan in the middle of a lot of the action.

Dubuc was pleased with his point guard's ability to move the team up the floor.

"I think Kara does a good job of taking pretty good care of the ball," Dubuc said. "If they want to stop her we have other people that will score the basketball."

The Tigers, who are now three wins away from earning a playoff birth, will await McCann Tech for another home game on Friday. The Tigers have not lost a home game this year. Still, Dubuc understands just what kind of challenges await the team.

"There's no weak sister in our league," he said. "We just go out every night and play as hard as we can."