Trenton Girls Reverse Fortunes In Hamilton

Gallatin Finally Beats Trenton, But Bulldogs Avenge South Harrison Loss
On Thursday at the Hamilton Tournament, the Trenton High School girls basketball team suffered a 54-28 loss to Gallatin – a team it had defeated twice earlier this year. But, on Saturday, Trenton bounced back with a 40-36 victory over South Harrison – a team Trenton suffered a loss to when they faced off in Grand River Conference play earlier in the season.
Thursday, Gallatin finally found its offense against Trenton after the Bulldogs limited their GRC foes to 15 points in a 26-15 win in the league match-up on Jan. 5 and 33 in a 38-33 victory at the Lawson Tournament on Jan. 13.
This time around was a stark contrast as Gallatin had 10 points in the first quarter alone and 25 by halftime. Trenton, meanwhile, struggled to keep up and trailed by 13 at the break. Trenton didn’t have a single field goal in the second quarter, a frame in which Gallatin outscored the Bulldogs 15-3.
Gallatin continued to score in the second half, using free throws in the fourth quarter to power a 19-point outburst over the final eight minutes. Trenton finally got some offense in the fourth quarter with a trio of triples from Morgan King, but at that point the game was already over.
“We struggled defensively, but you have to give a bunch of credit to Gallatin,” Trenton coach Kameron Cool said. “They played really well and hit a bunch of shots. We’re ready to get back into the gym, into our routine, and hopefully find some rhythm again.”
King’s nine points in the fourth quarter were her only points of the game, but that was still enough to lead Trenton in the contest. Madi Moore and Gracyn Rongey each scored six points in the loss while Chandler Lynch had three and Rebecca Urich and Mallory Sole rounded out the total with two each.
The sting of the Gallatin loss didn’t last long, however, as Trenton was able to avenge a loss from earlier in the year on Saturday against South Harrison.
In the two teams’ previous meeting, Trenton played with just five players and lost 35-25. A rough first quarter put Trenton in a big hole early, but Trenton rallied, cutting the lead to single digits late before being forced to foul and finishing the game with just four players. That allowed South Harrison to rebuild a lead and pull off a win that Trenton certainly felt like it could have had.
This time around, Trenton got it.
The Bulldogs used a 14-6 third quarter run to grab a 25-20 lead entering the final frame, but South Harrison battled back, overtaking Trenton by five points with just over three and a half minutes left to play. Trenton had the last punch, though, closing the contest on a 13-4 run to pick up the victory.
“This was a roller coaster game,” Cool said. “The girls did a great job of staying with it and dug in late in the game on defense to get the stops that we needed. It felt good for the effort to turn into a win.”
Teya Cooksey netted 14 points to lead Trenton in the win while Lynch finished with eight and Moore added seven. Urich scored six points, King had three and Rongey rounded out the team’s total with two.
“Teya was huge for us tonight,” Cool said. “She guarded really well and was a big spark for us offensively.”
Trenton moved to 6-10 overall with the split at Hamilton.
The two games were the only two contests Trenton had at the Hamilton Tournament, which was impacted by the weather early in the week.
The Bulldogs return to GRC action tonight (Tuesday), traveling to Unionville to take on Putnam County at 6 o’clock. The Bulldogs close the week with a pair of home games, hosting Macon on Thursday and Stanberry on Friday. Both of those games are scheduled for 6 p.m. starts as well.
LATHROP BOYS 71
TRENTON BOYS 45
The Trenton High School boys basketball team got just one game in at the Hamilton Tournament, and it was a tough one with the Bulldogs falling 71-45 to Lathrop.
A 22-5 first-quarter run by the Mules put Trenton on notice and Lathrop would tie or outscore Trenton in each quarter that followed. Trenton was able to score double-digit points in each quarter after the slow start in the first, but it wouldn’t be enough to close the gap on Lathrop.
Despite the loss, Brycin Loyd knocked down five three pointers to lead Trenton with a 15-point night. Chase Otto followed with 11 and Preston Harris added eight. Trenton also got four points from Tucker Otto, three from Gabe Novak and two from Gavin Roeder.
With the loss, Trenton fell to 3-11 on the season.
The Trenton boys will be at Putnam County tonight as well and also have home dates with Macon and Stanberry set for Thursday and Friday respectively.