The Toll Gate girls’ basketball team ran alongside North Providence, which dropped down from Division II, for most of their contest on Thursday night.

Just a few minutes into the second half, though, star senior forward Hannah McNulty quickly racked up her third and fourth personal fouls. Freshman point guard Natalie Aloisio also notched three fouls that backed Toll Gate into a corner.

The Cougars pounced at the opportunity, outscoring the Titans 30-16 during the second half to cruise to a 53-36 victory. Without McNulty’s size down low for about four minutes, North Providence created separation.

“It’s the mental aspect of the game,” Toll Gate head coach John Paolino said. “You lose one of your best players, they’ve got to focus on the game, whoever they’re playing with on the floor. They can't worry about what the referees are calling. That’s something we have to work on. In the end, it all balances out with the calls.”

Sierra Stewart, Chyanne Johnson and Stephanie Saucier all recorded buckets inside the painted area to spur the 28-10 run. The Titans took a 26-25 lead after Christina Barry assisted a McNulty shot off the inbounds pass, but that would be their last advantage.

McNulty was whistled for her fourth foul with 13:15 left in the second half, forcing Paolino to sit her for at least a few minutes. Without her, the Titans had difficulty stopping the Cougars in the post. Saucier drove inside to give North Providence a 29-26 lead before Stewart put on a clinic.

She cut inside for six straight points that effectively put the game out of reach, pounding Toll Gate on the boards to give her team a 39-26 cushion.

“We’ve got to go to the floor like [the Cougars] have,” Paolino said. “We’ve got to play tough like them. The scouting report was, these girls don’t quit. They don’t show you anything fancy on defense or offense, but they’re banging, they’re on the floor. There were a couple instances at the net where we didn't go to the floor, and they came down and scored.”

McNulty would eventually return to the court with just less than 10 minutes remaining, but the damage was too critical. Quinn Freeman came off the bench for four important points during the second half, cutting the deficit to 39-30.

North Providence maintained its dominance, though. Short jumpers and layups from Johnson and Saucier sealed Toll Gate’s fate during the final minutes, dropping the Titans to 2-1 in league play.

“These teams that came down from D-II, they have that toughness,” Paolino said. “We have to get to that level. I’d rather look like that now than at the end of the season. I’m calling it a good loss. We’ll live and we’ll learn from that.”

Toll Gate couldn’t get back on track against Middletown at the Smithfield Holiday Classic on Tuesday, falling 43-30 during the opening round. Second-half woes plagued the Titans again as the Islanders outscored them, 22-10, despite Barry finishing as the game-high scorer with 14.

The Titans will have a break to ring in the new year before facing off with Davies on Jan. 3. The Patriots were 1-1 in league play heading into a Wednesday meeting with Block Island.

“Our teams always get better as the season goes on,” Paolino said.