The holidays may be a time of vacation for many, but the Lakeland High School girls’ basketball team used the time of year to go to work, taking a big step forward in the process.

The Lady Cavaliers went 3-0 in the Blue Division of the 2015 Boo Williams Christmas Classic in Hampton, defeating Hampton High School 61-55 in overtime to take home the division title on Wednesday.

“We fought that entire game,” Lakeland coach Brandey Blunt said. “I believe that game showed what these girls are capable of when they just have confidence in each other and just do what they do. I was so proud of them.”

The Lady Cavs were down against the Lady Crabbers for most of the game, trailing 7-4 after the first quarter and 21-13 at halftime at the Boo Williams Sportsplex.

“It’s hard to beat Hampton in Hampton,” Blunt said. But around the midpoint of the game as she talked to her players, “I kind of gave them that challenge.”

She wanted her girls to cut the Lady Crabbers’ lead to under five going into the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, Hampton still led 37-30 at that point.

But by the end of regulation, her team had completed an incredible rally.

“Miraculously, we tied that game at 45 apiece,” Blunt said. “That made me super-excited. I was so glad, because that game should have been over.”

The Lady Cavaliers knocked down some key shots when it counted, leaning heavily on its top three contributors: sophomore guards Makayla Dickens, Brianna Copeland and Kayla Barnes.

“Makayla Dickens, she was the constant in that game,” Blunt said, noting it was essentially Dickens and Barnes that kept Lakeland within 10 points of Hampton for much of the contest.

Blunt said she tried all game to get production out of Copeland but was not having any success. She let Copeland know that if Lakeland was going win the game, it would need something from her.

Copeland was scoreless until the fourth quarter, and then “something went off in that girl,” Blunt said.

The Lady Cavs trailed 41-38 when Copeland got the ball from three-point range and scored her first points of the game.

“And the whole gym went crazy because we finally tied the game up with 41 apiece,” Blunt said.

The Lady Crabbers responded to go up 43-41, but then Copeland drove the lane, got fouled and drained two free throws to tie it up again.

Hampton scored once more to make it 45-43, and Copeland replied with a short jumper, on which she was fouled. She missed the free throw, but ensured an overtime session with the jumper, which knotted the game at 45.

Copeland made the miss at the charity stripe a faint memory by pouring in 10 points during the four-minute overtime period.

Noting that Copeland’s fourth-quarter scoring came in the final two minutes of regulation, Blunt reflected on her production, and noted, “You gave me 17 points in six minutes.”

Copeland’s clutch performance was particularly key because Dickens had fouled out in the fourth quarter, and Barnes was playing with four fouls.

For her play on Wednesday and her consistency throughout the three-day tournament, Copeland received the MVP trophy.

She finished with 17 points and five rebounds against Hampton. Dickens contributed 17 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals, and Barnes added 15 points, 10 boards, six steals and four assists.

Blunt praised Lady Cavaliers junior Jevedia Martin for playing a good game, contributing five points, and sophomore Amari Mason, a call-up from the junior varsity squad, played well, too, scoring five points, including a key three-pointer right before halftime.

After defeating Kecoughtan High School 58-30 on Monday, Lakeland downed Ocean Lakes High School 69-51 on Tuesday, led by Dickens and Copeland, who scored 22 points apiece.

The Lady Cavs (7-3) visit Indian River High School on Tuesday and Nansemond River on Thursday.