Trenton Bulldogs clinch GRC East titles with sweep at Putnam County

The Trenton High School basketball teams have won the Grand River Conference’s Eastern Division, and with it, earned the right to host the GRC Western Division champion Stanberry Bulldogs in a championship doubleheader on Friday night at THS.

On Tuesday night action from Putnam County High School in Unionville, the Trenton boys withstood a barrage of second-half three-point shots by Midget senior Calvin Heidenwith to win, 83-73.  Senior Spencer Harris had one of his finest performances as a Bulldog, scoring 28 points to solidify his all-but-certain first-team all-GRC status.  Seventeen of Spencer’s points came in the second half.  Connor Cotton battled foul trouble yet turned in a solid night with 18 points.  Corbyn Guile added 14 and Dylan Harris 13.

The win moves Trenton to 6-0 in Grand River Conference play, while dropping Putnam County to 6-1.  The Midgets are finished with GRC East play, earning the #2 seed in Friday’s ‘crossover’ action with the GRC West.  

After being held to 3 points by Trenton’s 1-2-2 zone in the first half, Calvin Heidenwith kept the Midgets within shouting distance of the Bulldogs in the second half, hitting 10 three-pointers in that time-frame, finishing with 36 points on the evening.  Kaden Seaton had 14 points and Carson Quint 13 for Putnam County.

Trenton Head Coach Jeremy Austin spoke in Tuesday night’s postgame show on KTTN FM 92.3 about defense sparking a late second-quarter run that gave his team a 13 point (39-26) halftime lead:

The Trenton girls won for the 18th time this season, securing the GRC East title in the process, with a 43-27 win at Putnam County.  Sophomore Mykah Hurley paced a first-quarter THS surge that gave the 7th-ranked Lady Bulldogs the lead, scoring 8 of her team-leading 12 points in that quarter, which ended with Trenton on top 19-6.  Whitley Richman had seven points in the first quarter, but the senior’s night was derailed when a sprained ankle struck underneath the south basket at Putnam County.  Head Coach Brian Upton, in an interview with KTTN’s Tom Johnson on Wednesday morning, said Richman’s injury is not as serious as the ankle sprain suffered by Salem Croy last Thursday, but Whitley’s availability for tonight’s home game against South Harrison is not immediately known.  Croy has missed the last two Trenton games, leaving the distinct possibility that two starters could be on the bench for the Wednesday home tilt.  Ainsley Tolson had 11 points in the Tuesday night win at Unionville, moving Trenton to 6-0 in GRC East play.

Both Trenton teams have one game leads in the divisional race (girls vs. Gallatin and boys vs. Putnam County) against teams they have already beaten, meaning a potential South Harrison victory tonight would leave the 1st-place spot even at 6-1, with Trenton, in that scenario, having the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage.

The South Harrison at Trenton games tonight will start at 6 o’clock (girls) and 7:30 (boys).  On Friday night, the Trenton Bulldogs host the Stanberry Bulldogs in the first-ever Grand River Conference championship games.  Both games will be aired on Hot Country Z 101.7, with video coverage on KGOZ-TV (YouTube.com/KTTNRadio).