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Blackhawk downs Trinity

4 min read

WEXFORD – For a seven-minute stretch during the second quarter Monday night, the Trinity High School girls basketball team’s 2-3 zone defense frustrated defending state champion Blackhawk.

The Cougars attacked the Hillers’ zone by launching three-pointers over it, and only Bridgette Shaffer made any. And one of her two baskets came in the final minute of the half.

Trinity used its defense to cut a 16-point deficit to just seven at halftime and seize all the momentum heading into the locker room.

The bad news for the Hillers is Blackhawk and its high-scoring senior guard Chassidy Omogrosso are still tough to stop for more than a quarter.

Omogrosso scored 32 points and was six-for-six from three-point range in the second half as Blackhawk used its long-range shooting and suffocating defensive pressure to run away from Trinity, 83-44, in the WPIAL Class AAA quarterfinals at North Allegheny High School.

The win was the 14th consecutive for top-seeded Blackhawk (21-3) and sends the Cougars into the semifinals Wednesday against Chartiers Valley.

Trinity (17-7) must forget this one quickly as it plays a consolation round game tonight (6:30 p.m.) against Beaver at Moon High School. The Hillers can still qualify for the PIAA tournament.

What Trinity can take from this one is the knowledge that it played a solid second quarter, when it cut a 25-9 Blackhawk lead to 33-26 at halftime. The Hillers, however, couldn’t overcome more than 20 turnovers against Blackhawk’s aggressive defense. The Cougars also hurt Trinity by winning the battle on the boards as forward Courtney Vanney had 13 rebounds to go with 24 points.

“We did not rebound the ball. We gave them too many second-chance opportunities,” Trinity coach Bob Miles lamented.

“They also put so much pressure on our guards, and we’re young at that position. We didn’t attack the press as well as we can. One thing we emphasized was valuing the basketball, rebounding and limiting the number of unforced turnovers … but it’s hard to simulate Blackhawk’s speed and aggressiveness.”

Trinity opened the game in a man-to-man defense but had trouble stopping drives by Omogrossi, a Pitt recruit. She scored eight first-quarter points and started the second quarter with a three-pointer that gave the Cougars a 21-7 lead.

Omogrosso, however, made only five of 19 shots in the first half and did not score in the second quarter after the Hillers switched to the zone defense they played in an opening-round win over Belle Vernon.

Trinity’s Abby O’Connor came off the bench and scored nine of her 11 points in the second quarter, and Sierra Kotchman had five points including a three, to help turn the tide in the Hillers’ favor.

“Abbey O’Connor gave us some scoring punch when it was needed,” Miles said. “She gave us good minutes off the bench.”

It didn’t take long for Blackhawk to shoot Trinity out of the zone in the third quarter. The Cougars made four three-pointers – two by Omogrosso – in the first 3:10 of the half to open a 49-28 lead.

“The first half, that was probably the worst shooting half we had all year,” said Blackhawk coach Steve Lodovico, whose brother, Marc, was a former standout player at Waynesburg University.

“We have all the confidence in the world in our guards, so we told them they still have the green light to shoot the three. They responded with a really good third quarter.”

Blackhawk scored 33 points in the quarter and stretched its lead to 66-36.

Omogrosso scored 13 points in the third quarter. She finished 14-for-29 from the field.

The Hillers mustered only 18 points in the second half, when they had more turnovers than baskets.

Center Mary Dunn had 11 points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots for Trinity. Kotchman also contributed 11 points.

“Watching Trinity on film, we saw they like to get the ball inside to Mary Dunn. She can get the ball so easily, so we wanted to make sure to pressure their guards and make it difficult to get it to her,” Lodovico said. “Trinity is very good in a half-court game, so we wanted to set the tempo and make them play at our pace, which is a faster pace.”

Miles said he hasn’t seen Beaver play this season, but because of the quick turnaround, the Bobcats likely know very little about his team.

“The silver lining is we still have that opportunity to qualify for the state playoffs, so that will have our players focused,” Miles said.

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