The 7th-ranked Trenton Lady Bulldogs received one of the strongest tests of their 2016-2017 season, seeing the #6 seed Penney Lady Hornets, buoyed by the confidence of two straight upset wins in the Lawson Tournament, cut a 29-15 halftime deficit to just five at the end of the third quarter, placing Trenton squarely “on the ropes”.
Reeling heading into the fourth quarter, THS showed resolve in never giving up their advantage, and hold on for a 48-43 win over the Hamilton girls, in the weather-delayed championship game of the Lawson Invitational Tournament, played on Monday night.
With tournament MVP Whitley Richman held to five points by a swarming Penney defense, sophomores Ainsley Tolson and Salem Croy picked up the scoring slack for the Lady Bulldogs, with Tolson scoring 15 points to go with Croy’s 13. Fellow sophomore Sidney Lynch had an understated but effective night, scoring seven points, but hitting critical fourth quarter free throws, while providing strong “board work” for THS. The win improves Trenton to 12-2 on the season, with two tournament titles on the resume (including Gallatin in early December).
Penney, a young team quickly moving up the KCI ranks under young Head Coach Jordan Richman, was paced by Nora Ford with 15 points and McKauley Prothero with 15. The Lady Hornets, in earlier play at Lawson, had upset #3 seed Gallatin and #2 seed West Platte, earning the “Blue and Gold” a match-up with the long-time rival Lady Bulldogs.
The Trenton girls return to Grand River Conference Eastern Division play for the rest of the week, playing at Polo tonight (Tuesday night), hosting South Harrison on Thursday night, and traveling to Milan on Friday night. Trenton, the #1 seed in next week’s Hamilton Tournament, will have all three of those upcoming GRC East games carried live on KTTN FM 92.3.
Penney’s girls are equally as busy for the remainder of the week, hosting former Trenton Head Coach Quentin Albrecht and his Maryville Lady Spoofhounds on Tuesday night, traveling to Lathrop for a showdown with the Lady Mules on Wednesday, and hosting the North Platte Panthers on Friday night. Penney has a #5 seed in next week’s “home” tournament, meaning a semifinal rematch with Trenton looms as a distinct possibility for Thursday, January 26th.
