The Trenton High School girls basketball team is returning to the district championship game for the fourth consecutive season.
Trenton dispatched Brookfield 64-33 in the semifinals of the Class 3, District 14 Tournament on Wednesday night in Higginsville to earn its spot in the title game once again.
Brookfield, which defeated Class 3, District 13 top seed Palmyra just last week, gave it a game effort in the opening frame, trailing just 17-12 eight minutes into the contest.
But in typical Trenton fashion, the close proximity of the score in the first quarter was just a mirage as the Bulldogs took off from that point. Ainsley Tolson connected on three three-pointers in the second quarter and Salem Croy knocked down two as well as Trenton began to turn the game into a rout. By halftime, the Bulldogs had what would be enough points to win the game, leading 42-16.
“We played well tonight,” Trenton Head Coach Brian Upton said. “We shot well, shared the ball well and took care of the ball very well. Brookfield has a nice team and they shot well the first quarter. But we, defensively, adjusted to what they were doing and, overall, played great defense.”
Trenton added just 10 more points in the third quarter and 12 in the fourth as the Bulldogs cruised into Friday night’s championship game.
Tolson finished with a game-high 22 points, adding six rebounds and five assists. Maci Moore had 16 points, five rebounds, two steals and four assists and Mykah Hurley added 10 points, three steals and five assists.
“Ainsley was really good tonight,” Upton said. “She shot well, distributed the ball well and defended and rebounded great. Mykah played great as well, hit some big shots and handed out five assists with three steals. Maci was a load around the basket.”
Trenton also got six points from Croy and four each from Sidney Lynch and Lexi Whitaker. Lynch added nine rebounds and three assists while Whitaker finished with two steals and three assists. Two points from Chandler Lynch rounded out the final total.
As a team, Trenton handed out assists on 21 of its 25 made baskets and turned the ball over just three times in the game.
Trenton’s win marked the first win for a Grand River Conference team against a Clarence Cannon Conference school in the last three seasons. The CCC had won 18 straight against the GRC, though Trenton was not responsible for any of those defeats. Trenton had defeated Brookfield in 2016, but was not a member of the GRC at that time.
Trenton will now face Chillicothe in the championship game – the same school the Bulldogs faced in the district championship when their current title game streak began four years earlier. The Hornets took that contest, played as the Class 3, District 15 championship in Lawson, 54-26.
Trenton and Chillicothe met earlier this season with the Bulldogs taking a 60-50 win on the road. That victory was Trenton’s second straight win over Chillicothe.
Trenton now sits at 23-0 on the season while Chillicothe is 20-7.
The Bulldogs and Hornets will tip off from Higginsville at 5:30 p.m. on Friday with the district title and a state playoff berth on the line.
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