HALE - Jan. 19, 2009 - Hale stayed unbeaten Monday at Oscoda, but just barely.

Meanwhile, the Owls made their latest demand of respect by pushing the Eagles to the limit before Drew Compau's 3-pointer with six seconds left allowed Hale to escape Oscoda with a 37-36 victory.

The Owls' zone defense snuffed out much of the Hale's usually dependable offense in the paint, while the Eagles struggled to hit their outside shots. For the game, Hale hit just 13-of-37 (35 percent), far below their season average, and were just 8-of-22 from the line. Oscoda's patience on offense also limited the Eagles' possessions, and Hale also committed 20 turnovers.

"Oscoda did a great job being patient with the basketball and attacking our defense," said Hale coach Ryan Parkinson. "We really couldn't get anything going in the first three quarters against their defense. they took away a lot of our offensive options and played us well."

The Owls edged out to a 16-15 halftime lead and maintained a slim margin through most of the second half. The Eagles finally got things going in the fourth quarter as Compau hit four free throws and Christian Mudry scored six of his seven points. Oscoda hurt its cause by missing seven fourth quarter free throws.

Hale (10-0) gained possession trailing by two points in the final seconds. Compau was looking to drive to the hoop, but with Oscoda's defense closing off that option, drilled the trey for what proved to be the game-winner. The Owls were only able to get off a half-court shot at that fell short.

"I like the way we battled to the end," Parkinson said. "Drew's '3' was a big shot.

"We have a lot of things to work on before we see Hillman on Friday."

Compau's 3-pointer also made him the game's only double-digit scorer with 11. Tanner Shellenbarger and Nick Katterman each pulled down 10 rebounds.

Justin Cain had eight points for the Owls (2-6), while Brandon McCausey had seven and Chris Dehmel scored six.