Trinity takes the 5th, beats section rival
By Dave Whipkey
For the Observer-Reporter
newsroom@observer-reporter.com
For the third time this season, section rivals Lincoln Park and Trinity collided on the hardwood. No section title was at stake, however, the fifth seed out of the WPIAL was as the two girls basketball teams reacquainted themselves at Hiller Hall Wednesday night.
And goodness did they put on a show as the Hillers got the better of the Leopards for the second time as they scratched and clawed their way to a 64-60 win, earning the No. 5 seed in the WPIAL for the PIAA Class 5A playoffs. Lincoln Park falls to the No. 6 seed.
PIAA matchups and game sites for both will be determined early next week.
Lincoln Park (22-4) won Round 1 of the trilogy 61-60 in overtime Jan. 23 at Hiller Hall while Trinity took Round 2 by a 32-29 count earlier this month on the Leopards’ home floor.
Trinity coach Kathy McConnell-Miller showed a sense of relief following Wednesday’s tight win.
“It’s not fun, it’s not fun,” she said. “They’re just good. They’re just so good in so many ways. They’re just a tough matchup for us.”
With the win, Trinity improves its record to 20-6.
Freshman Sutton Williamson continues to impress this postseason as she tallied 25 points for the Hillers while teammate Ruby Morgan added 22.
J’La Kizart led Lincoln Park with 18 points, 15 of which came in the second half. Maddie Syka added 15 for the Leopards while Sarah Scott chipped in with 13.
Like Monday evening in their win against Indiana, the Hillers came out cold, missing their first five shots and committing two turnovers as the Leopards got out to a 6-0 lead before Trinity called timeout nearly three minutes into the first quarter. Lincoln Park parlayed the start to a 15-10 lead.
Lincoln Park extended the lead to seven twice in the second quarter as Syka went to work, scoring nine points. The last two came on a scoop shot at the end of the quarter as the Leopards hauled a 27-22 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Morgan and Williamson combined for 19 of Trinity’s 22 points in the first half, keeping the Hillers within striking distance.
It didn’t take long for the hosts to find their footing in the third quarter and establish some control of the contest. Trailing 32-28 early in the quarter, the Hillers went on an 11-0 run to take a 39-32 lead between the 5:10 and 4:15 mark. A Williamson and-one play cut the Leopards’ lead to one, then a Macie Justice three-pointer gave the Hillers their first lead at 34-32 with 4:40 left in the quarter.
A Morgan three-pointer following two Williamson free throws pushed the Hillers’ lead to seven with 4:15 to go in the third.
Williamson and Morgan combined for 19 points in the quarter to give the Hillers a 47-44 lead heading into the fourth. Williamson’s drives to the hoop complimented Morgan’s two triples in the period to help the Hillers maintain their lead as the game headed into the final stanza.
“She’s a dynamic player and is really skilled,” McConnell-Miller said referring to Williamson. “She’s diligent about getting in the gym and working on her skills. It was just a matter of her being able to match the physicality and today I think she did. I thought she battled. When she came into high school I thought she was a varsity offensive player and a junior varsity defensive player. These last few weeks though she has shown she is really talented on both ends of the floor.”
Williamson was trusted enough to help shut down Syka, who was held to one point over the final two quarters, much of which was attributed to the freshman’s ability to guard the Leopards’ most potent offensive weapon.
McConnell-Miller also credited Morgan for showing a blue-collar approach in getting her offense going.
“I thought she worked really hard to get open tonight,” she added. “I thought she gave everything she had to come off screens and get off shots.”
Trinity survived the pressing Leopards in the fourth quarter by going to the free throw line and knocking down foul shots. The Hillers closed out the Leopards by making 10 of 12 from the stripe. Agatha Niccolai was key for the hosts as she was able to navigate the press and make five of six free throws in the final frame.
“Aggie was just great down the stretch,” McConnell Miller added. “She’s a great pressure player. If you take a look at her, she’s made clutch free throws for us all season.”
Kizart made the Hillers sweat a bit more with 15 seconds left when she scored off a loose ball scramble following a missed free throw, cutting the margin to 62-60. But Niccolai sealed it when she dribbled over the mid court, was fouled and made two free throws with eight seconds remaining for the game’s final points.
“It was a great battle,” Leopards coach Ryan Kacsur said. “This game was for if we are going to to play an hour and a half away or three and a half hours away. It doesn’t take away anything from what we accomplished this year. Kudos to them, they did a great job face-guarding Syka the second half. Who knows we may see them again.”