By DAVE O’SULLIVAN Publisher OCEAN CITY — Ocean City girls basketball coach Paul Baruffi said his Red Raiders moved on quickly from a stunning 27-26 loss to rival Mainland Regional in the season-opening PBA Tipoff Weekend. Gabby Boggs’ buzzer-beater snatched a victory away from Ocean City for the visiting Mustangs. For the Red Raiders players, however, the sting of that loss may have lasted a little bit longer than coach Baruffi wanted to admit. Point guard Grace Sacco got off to a fiery start in the rematch on Tuesday night, scoring all 12 of her points in the first quarter as Ocean City plugged away and finally got past Mainland, 32-26, with a strong third quarter and by hitting six free throws in the final frame. “We let go of that pretty quick. We had to. That happened and we talked about it for a day,” Baruffi said of the season-opening loss to the Mustangs. “Honestly, that’s what we did. We came back and beat two good teams in Wildwood, and we beat Middle Township. It’s going to be a dogfight. I think there are five teams (in the Cape-Atlantic League) who can knock each other off on any given night, maybe six or seven.” Megan Stafford of Mainland puts up a shot over several Ocean City defenders. Megan Stafford of Mainland puts up a shot over several Ocean City defenders. “We really needed a competitive game like this, and Mainland, I think we are kind of mirror images of each other in a lot of ways,” Baruffi said. “They are little bit bigger than us and Grace is a little bit more of an experienced guard, and I think that’s what you saw was a battle of those two things.” Once Sacco’s jump shot cooled, she did was she does best — handle the ball and run Ocean City’s methodical offense. “The first shot going in always helps, and just having my teammates be in the right spot at the right time, that helps, too,” Sacco said. “Once Alexis went out with the injury, you have to step up for your team and get it done.” Starting guard Alexis Paone injured her shoulder early in the first quarter and didn’t return, but Rosalia Daddi and Danielle Donoghue filled in nicely for the Red Raiders, and once Ocean City got the lead and was able to maintain it, the offense was in good hands with Sacco. “Grace is a special player and does things that a lot of people can’t do. Her shot hasn’t been there like it was early tonight, so if she can do that, she’s pretty hard to cover,” Baruffi said. “One of the things I’ve been talking to Grace about all year is pulling up for that little 10-footer, and she did that, she pulled up and got the shot off.” Contact Dave O’Sullivan: sully@acglorydays.com; on Twitter @GDsullysays [adsense]