By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher BUENA VISTA — Holy Spirit was six minutes away from a berth in the Cape-Atlantic League tournament championship game and held a nine-point lead on second-seeded Lower Cape May Regional. Then it all came undone for the No. 3 Spartans. The Caper Tigers outscored the Spartans 16-4 down the stretch to rally for a 45-40 win at St. Augustine Prep and set up a third meeting this season with Ocean City in Saturday’s tournament championship game at Stockton College at noon. Lower Cape May (24-1) got five straight points from Lauren Holden, the league’s leading scorer, to cut into the deficit, and with less than a minute remaining Carrie Wunder’s driving layup put the Caper Tigers up for good, 41-40. Maddie Gibson added a jumper and Holden closed it out by hitting a pair of free throws with less than 20 seconds left. Holy Spirit's Francesca Geromini dribbles down the court on a fast break. Holy Spirit’s Francesca Geromini dribbles down the court on a fast break. Holden didn’t shoot a great percentage, hitting just 8-of-29 shots, but hit three 3-pointers and scored 13 points in the first half to help give Lower Cape May a 25-20 halftime lead. Her basket with 2:10 left in the third quarter tied the game at 29 before Spirit went on a 9-0 run to take a 38-29 lead. An inside bucket by Reale and a 3-pointer from Gallagher highlighted the run. Despite the loss, Smith said playing against a team such as Lower Cape May is a great way for the Spartans to prepare for the state playoffs, which begin next week. “It’s a great experience for our kids. It’s a loud environment. (Lower) travels well and they did a great job getting a lot of fans here, and that’s something you have to get used to as you get ready to play in the state tournament,” Smith said. “This is the type of atmosphere they are going to be playing in the rest of the way and they need to be ready for that.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays  [adsense]