Jan 19, 2015 4 min read

Stability in the starting lineup is critical for a basketball team. Chemistry and knowledge of the system is paramount, especially when facing top competition.

Trinity was reminded of that Monday night. Playing without starting point guard Alayna Cappelli, who suffered a minor injury in a loss Saturday to Ringgold, the Hillers had to go to its depth chart against Chartiers Valley.

Several players shined coming off the bench, but the balance was off in the lineup and the Colts’ pressure-heavy defense took advantage.

Chartiers Valley made 13 of 16 free throws in the fourth quarter to complete a 52-38 come-from-behind victory over the Hillers in a Section 5-AAA game at Trinity High School.

First-place Chartiers Valley (8-0, 11-3) was led by senior guard Alexa Golden, a Kent State recruit, who sparked the Colts in the second half and finished with a game-high 20 points. Seniors Melissa Rickens and Karley O’Keefe added 12 points.

After 12 first-half lead changes, Chartiers Valley grabbed a five-point lead late in the third quarter and never looked back.

“In the second half, we executed our offense a bit better,” Chartiers Valley head coach Ashley Battle said. “(Trinity) did a great job not giving us our first option and they made us work for everything. We found our stride and locked down defensively.”

Trinity senior forward Rachel Phillis and sophomore guard Sierra Kotchman each scored eight points in the first half to help the Hillers (5-3, 11-4) enter halftime in a 22-22 tie. The teams traded baskets until O’Keefe and Golden made back-to-back three-pointers in the final two minutes to give Chartiers Valley the 33-28 lead at the end of the third quarter.

After Phillis, who finished with team-high 14 points, started the fourth quarter with a layup, the Colts went on an 8-0 run and Golden made seven of 10 free throws to clinch the victory.

The Hillers had seven turnovers in the fourth quarter and made just four field goals.

“I don’t fault our team’s effort,” Trinity head coach Bob Miles said. “Chartiers Valley is a very good team. They got a few threes and made some nice shots, but our kids hung in there and played well.”

Trinity and Chartiers Valley have two of the top defenses in WPIAL Class AAA and it showed. The Colts used a mix of a pressure-heavy zone with man-to-man concepts to push the Hillers’ guards beyond the three-point line.

The move obstructed Trinity’s offense, especially with Cappelli out and Kotchman moving over to point guard. Against the zone, the Hillers attempted to move the ball inside-out and vice versa against man-to-man. Eventually, the Colts focused on Kotchman and limited junior forward Mary Dunn’s chances inside.

After scoring just one point in the first quarter in the last meeting against Chartiers Valley, which ended with a 36-32 loss, Trinity jumped to a 14-12 lead behind Phillis and Kotchman, who scored 11 points.

Golden, a slashing guard, took over from there. She scored the first seven points of the second quarter for Chartiers Valley, which took a four-point lead until the Hillers tied the game at the half.

“She brings so much offensively and defensively,” Battle said of Golden. “She’s our catalyst. She had a bunch of tips on missed shots and had a few steals. A lot of what she does doesn’t show up on a box score.”

Despite losing its second straight game, Miles saw positives out of the loss. Sophomore forward Abbey O’Connor grabbed eight rebounds, junior forward Delaney Elling has improved drastically in her first season back on the court and junior guard Natalie Cappelli played a strong defensive game.

“This showed us that we have people on our bench who can give us quality minutes,” Miles said. “Those three played great games and the whole team gave a nice effort. It wasn’t the result we wanted, but for the most part, we played well.”