The last time the Gainesville girls basketball team won a state title, it was essentially a half-court 3-on-3 type of game, with three girls on each end of the floor, and they couldn’t cross half court.

You either played offense or defense.

On Friday night at the RP Funding Center in Lakeland, it was the play of one player in particular that put a dagger in the hearts of the Lady Hurricanes.

Marshall University signee Olivia Olson scored a game-high 30 points as top-seed New Smyrna Beach won its first state title in program history with a 56-49 win against No. 3 seed GHS in the FHSAA Class 5A state championship game.

“She’s an amazing player,” said GHS senior Jayden Terry, a Louisiana Tech signee. “I’ve played against her for some years now and she’s definitely gotten better. I respect her a lot as a player. I hope that she does big things at Marshall, and I hope to see her again.”

Olson was 10-of-16 from the floor and 8-of-10 from the free throw line, including four free throws in the final 33 seconds, as the Barracudas (27-5) pulled away late.

She also hit a 35-foot shot at the buzzer to give New Smyrna Beach a 44-36 lead at the end of the third quarter.

It was the second state championship game appearance for GHS coach Jazlynd Rollins and her first as a coach.

“Coming here as a player, I don’t remember one play, one possession, I just remember winning,” said Rollins, who won a state title as a senior at Buchholz in 2013. “As a coach, I remember every possession, every play, and we didn’t win, but it’s OK because we’ll be back.”

New Smyrna Beach took a 50-40 lead on a bucket by Olson with 4:22 to play in the game, but Gainesville senior Jamison Cardwell, who tied Terry with a team-high 18 points, knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of key with 2:54 remaining to cut it to single digits.

Cardwell added 1-of-2 free throws to make it a 2-possession game, 50-44, with 1:41 remaining.

Terry made a layup to get GHS (17-9) within four at 50-46 with 1:18 left.

Following a pair of free throws by Sariah Ammons (5 points) to give the Barracudas a 52-46 lead with 65 seconds remaining, Cardwell struck again.

Cardwell, who will be announcing where she will play college basketball next week, hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key just six seconds later and GHS only trailed by three, 52-49, with 59 seconds remaining.

“It was just adrenaline, it was going,” Cardwell said. “I work hard. I put up so many shots and they were just falling at the right moment. I thank God, but it came up short at the end, but that’s OK. I’m so glad I’m in this position. I’m so thankful.”

The Hurricanes got the ball back again down three, but the Barracudas forced a turnover and made their free throws down the stretch.

“I’m very proud,” Rollins said. “The girls fought. There were a couple of instances where we lost our composure, but we came back, and we fought hard. We played until the buzzer hit zero, and that’s all you can ask for, really.”

GHS finished with 21 turnovers and New Smyrna Beach outscored the ‘Canes, 28-5, in fast break points.

“I think their defense stomped us,” said Rollins. “We made some adjustments, but No. 3 (Olson) she got hot, and it’s hard to stop a player when they get hot.”

The Purple Hurricanes countered that by limiting the Barracudas to just three offensive rebounds.

“I told them all, ‘Crash the boards, no second chance points, we’ve got to rebound the ball as if our life depends on it,’ and they did that,” Rollins said. “They did that very well.”

The loss ended an eight-game winning streak for GHS, which won a district title and advanced to its first final four since 1987.

“Honestly, it’s been a really long ride,” Terry said. “I love my teammates, I love my coach, it’s been a beautiful journey. It’s brought me so many opportunities, so I am truly grateful. I thank God, I thank my parents and my coaches for everything that they’ve done for me to get me where I’m at. I’m on to bigger and better, so Louisiana Tech, here I come.”

It was a historic season for the Lady Hurricanes, who won state titles in 1921 and 1923.

“It meant a lot,” Rollins said. “We made history. It was the first time that girls basketball has been state runner-up in a long time, so I’m really proud of the girls for making it this far and staying disciplined.”