Feb 26, 2024 4 min read

By Dave Whipkey

For the Observer-Reporter

newsroom@observer-reporter.com

The Trinity girls basketball season still has some life left. And with that, the Hillers get a third game with a foe they are highly familiar with.

Trinity overcame a sluggish first quarter and eventually took down a game Indiana squad 56-39 in a WPIAL Class 5A consolation round game Monday evening at Hiller Hall.

The Hillers’ reward is a rematch with section foe Lincoln Park, who knocked off North Hills to setup the rubber match between the two rivals.

“We’ve had some battles with them this year, for sure,” Hillers coach Kathy McConnell-Miller noted. “They’ll be prepared for us as we will be for them.”

Trinity (19-6) and Lincoln Park will renew acquaintances Wednesday night (7 p.m.) at Hiller Hall for the right to finish in fifth place in the WPIAL. Lincoln Park earned a 61-60 overtime win at Trinity on Jan. 23. The Hillers evened things up with a 32-29 win at Lincoln Park on Feb. 8. The two squads tied for the Section 4 title.

Indiana (18-7) came into the contest the Section 1 champion and appeared set to pull off a minor upset as they got out to a 13-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Indians defense held the normally potent-shooting Hillers to 2-for-12 shooting from the field and generally made life difficult for the hosts.

“We didn’t have our best first half, so we decided to extend our press a little bit and we were going to have to get a bit deeper into our bench if we wanted to play a high-possession game,” McConnell-Miller added. “I was pleased with the energy and decision making they brought.”

Part of that bench for the Hillers included Sutton Williamson, who was inserted into the lineup with Trinity struggling from an energy standpoint. Her layup and subsequent foul shot after getting hacked gave the Hillers a 17-16 lead with a little more than four minutes remaining in the first half seemed to kick-start the Hillers.

“Sutton’s a dynamic player,” McConnell-Miller added. “She’s going to be a great high school basketball player. We saw that the first day she walked into the gym. She’s super-skilled. She knows the game and she understands it. The physicality is something she’s going to have to adjust to over the years.”

Sutton finished with seven points while Maddy Roberts came off the bench to contribute six points.

Trinity was able to utilize their patented ball movement to get open three-point shots the rest of the way as the Hillers knocked down a total of eight triples. Ruby Morgan led the way with four three-pointers, good for a team-leading 12 points, and Riley Corrins made three for her nine points.

“I thought we were able to move the ball a little bit better in the second half and we were able to get Ruby some better looks as the game went on,” McConnell-Miller noted. “We did a better job of everyone getting some touches to get more open shots.”

The Hillers went 7-for-12 from the field in the second quarter to knot score at 24-24 at the half and took over in the third quarter as they made four more three-pointers to boost themselves to a 38-30 lead.

Trinity outscored the Indians 18-9 in the fourth to put the game away. A Morgan three extended the advantage to 45-32 with 5:30 left and a Sam Horne driving layup increased the lead to 47-32 with 4:45 remaining.

Trinity’s full-court press also helped flip the script by forcing 20 Indiana turnovers, kick-starting the Hillers’ offense and propelling them to the third date with Lincoln Park.

“I think when you have the ability to get deeper into your bench, that gives you fresh legs to deal with their two outstanding ball handlers and get up and pressure them and disrupt them,” McConnell-Miller said.

Indiana was led by Bella Antonacci, who finished with a game-high 15 points. Her sister, Julia Antonacci, contributed with three three-pointers for nine points. The Indians will take on North Hills Wednesday in the seventh-place game.

With the win, Trinity has clinched a spot in the PIAA tournament.