Mar 11, 2020 4 min read

CHAMBERSBURG – Opponents of the Trinity High School girls basketball team know about the Hillers’ Riley DeRubbo and Courtney Dahlquist. They call them a pair of talented offensive players who are capable of scoring in double figures every night.

The Hillers, however, are more than just DeRubbo and Dahlquist.

Much more.

The Hillers also have players such as Kaylin Venick, Emily Venick, Ashley Durig, Marlaina Bozek, Alyssa Clutter and Eden Williamson, to name a few. To opponents, they are not pleasant types. Their specialties are preventing, not scoring, points. They trot out of the Hillers’ locker room and onto the basketball court like the worst of nightmares, and they refuse to go away for 32 minutes. They are blankets in sneakers and Tuesday night they scared up plenty of praise.

“They are quick. They harass you, they harass the ballhandler,” Great Valley coach Alex Vernachik said.

Trinity’s sticky full-court press overwhelmed Great Valley, forcing 21 turnovers as the Hillers cruised to a 47-28 victory in the PIAA Class 5A second-round game at Chambersburg High School.

Trinity (21-5), which advances to the quarterfinals Saturday against Gettysburg at a site and time to be determined, never trailed against Great Valley (23-5), the District 1 runner-up. The Hillers led 6-4 after one quarter, 18-8 at halftime and 34-12 after three quarters. The Hillers’ defense made sure that Great Valley would never generate enough offense to fuel a comeback.

“We haven’t seen a team that plays as hard in the open court as Trinity,” Vernachik said. “All of their motors do not shut off. Playing against that, it not only takes its toll physically but it takes its toll mentally, too.”

Great Valley wasn’t in the right frame of mind after being held to only four points in each of the first three quarters. Much of that had to do with Trinity’s full-court press. At one point early in the fourth quarter, Great Valley was 6-for-30 from the field, had not attempted a free throw and had committed 18 turnovers.

“The mental and physical preparation by this team has been impressive,” said Trinity coach Kathy McConnell-Miller. “The last two days, they showed the desire to be playing at this time in March.”

About the only thing Trinity didn’t show against Great Valley was a good shooting touch in the first half. Despite turning over Great Valley at an alarming rate and forcing a faster pace than the Patriots were comfortable with, Trinity led by only 18-8 at halftime.

“I think the drive here had something to do with it,” said DeRubbo, who led Trinity with a game-high 18 points. “We had to get our legs under us.”

DeRubbo and Dahlquist did just that in the second quarter, when Trinity pushed a two-point lead to 10. The duo each scored six points in the second quarter.

In the third quarter, the Hillers pulled away and let everyone get into the act. Seven different players scored in the quarter as Trinity held a 16-4 scoring edge and put the game firmly in the win column.

The Hillers scored the first eight points of the third quarter, including two layups by Kaylin Venick, who finished with six points. After a pair of Great Valley long-range baskets, Trinity closed the quarter on a 6-0 run, getting two free throws by Williamson, a driving basket by Bozek and a fast-break layup by Clutter that made the score 34-12.

“We like to play with a rhythm on offense,” Vernachik said. “We couldn’t get into a rhythm. They were too physical for us. We saw on film that Trinity likes to play at a fast pace. We can play fast, but not the helter-skelter pace they can force.”

Trinity wrapped up the win by playing keepaway during a foul-filled fourth quarter. Fouling is something the Hillers didn’t do until late as Great Valley didn’t attempt a free-throw until the fourth quarter. That’s a remarkable statistic for a team with a defensive style as aggressive as the Hillers.

“I know I wouldn’t want to play an entire game against some of our players in the press,” DeRubbo said. “We have great energy on this team.”

Trinity held Tessa Liberatoscioli, the Patriots’ leading scorer, to only seven points, five of which came in the fourth quarter. Emily DuPont led Great Valley with 10 points.

“That’s a physical team we played,” McConnell-Miller said. “We had to match that and we did. We responded to it and maintained our composure.

“We have girls who love the game of basketball and love to play. They are selfless. They will do anything your ask of them. They make sacrifices for each other. That’s what makes this team so much fun to coach.”