Girls Basketball Player of the Year: Courtney Dahlquist, Trinity
Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Trinity’s Courtney Dahlquist sets up in the corner for a three-pointer in the Hillers’ playoff victory over Fox Chapel. Dahlquist was named second team all-state on the Class 5A team.
Holly Tonini/For the Observer-Reporter
Trinity’s Courtney Dahlquist scores a three-pointer over Chartiers Valley’s Perri Page.
Courtney Dahlquist could have remained a dominant back-to-the-basket player during her senior year at Trinity High School.
She also could have remained the low-post option on every possession for the Hillers’ girls basketball team.
And Dahlquist could have been the top player in the area, even without adding a perimeter shot to her game and handling the basketball behind the three-point line.
That, however, would not have helped Dahlquist’s development as a player and Trinity’s growth as a team.
“In the offseason, I decided that if I wanted to get better as a player, then I had to play behind the three-point line. If I could develop a three-point shot, then it was going to make it so much harder to guard me,” Dahlquist said. “It was a plan. It wasn’t something that just happened.”
So she worked on her long-range shooting. Again. And again.
“I don’t know how many three-pointers I shot to get ready for the season, but I shot a whole lot,” Dahlquist said. “I shot three-pointers from all different spots. It was tiring at the beginning because I wasn’t used to it, but once I got the hang of it then muscle memory took over.”
As Dahlquist’s game expanded this winter to include the three-point shot, her scoring average also grew while Trinity’s winning percentage spiked and the Hillers rolled to the Class 5A Section 3 title, a 17-game winning streak and the most notable regular-season win by any girls basketball team in the WPIAL this season.
Dahlquist averaged 17.4 points per game during the regular season, and for her performance has been selected as the Observer-Reporter’s Girls Basketball Player of the Year. She is the third Trinity player in five years to receive the honor and the fifth from the Hillers overall.
Perhaps Dahlquist’s best game came in Trinity’s 49-42 victory over Chartiers Valley on Jan. 23 at Hiller Hall. She scored a game-high 19 points, 12 coming from three-point range, as Trinity ended Chartiers Valley’s state-record 64-game winning streak.
“She’s really expanded her game,” Trinity coach Kathy McConnell-Miller confirmed. “She’s really learned to stretch defenses and shoot the three ball. I credit her for the amount of time that she put in. I definitely respect what she has done. She knows she has the green light, and she definitely played her role.”
The new style of basketball Dahlquist plays should fit well with the college game. She is a Campbell University recruit. The Camels play in the Big South Conference and went 16-7 this season, advancing to the league title game. She will play a forward position, one that can venture away from the basket and into three-point land.
Chartiers Valley got a measure of revenge against Trinity, beating the Hillers 62-40 in the WPIAL Class 5A championship game. It was a night when nothing went right for the Hillers. Because only district champions advanced to the state tournament this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Hillers’ season ended there with a 21-2 record.
“I definitely think we had a great year,” Dahlquist is quick to say. “We had high hopes but lost in the WPIAL championship. We persevered, though. We won a lot of games that people didn’t think we could win. Though our section wasn’t as good as it had been in the past, we played a tough non-section schedule.”
Dahlquist was joined on the all-district first team by two of her teammates, junior guard Alyssa Clutter and senior guard Kaylin Venick, along with Peters Township junior post player Journey Thompson and West Greene senior guard Jersey Wise. Thompson shared the area scoring title with Dahlquist by averaging 17.4 points per game. Wise averaged 15.9 points, four steals, four assists and three rebounds for West Greene, which was undefeated against Class A competition until the WPIAL title game and had a 15-game winning streak.
Clutter and Venick teamed with Dahlquist and second-team selection Emily Venick. They were part of a Hillers’ full-court press that smothered opponents. The Hillers allowed only 31.6 points per game.
“Honestly, our defense was good. We played as a team so well. We played a lot through our defense, and when we did that we started having fun. That’s when we were able to start shooting three-pointers,” Dahlquist explained.
“We all are so competitive. Our practices were so competitive. Give us a rebounding drill and, oh, my. All of us wanted to win because we are so competitive. That’s why our games were so much fun.”
Among the players on the second team are Avella’s Katie Dryer, who averaged a double-double for the season and Clara Paige Miller, who helped Waynesburg to the second round of the WPIAL Class 3A playoffs. Three players on the second team, along with all five on the third team, re underclassmen, which should bode well for the quality of play in the area next season.
Players of the Year — Courtney Dahlquist, Trinity
First Team
Alyssa Clutter, Trinity, Jr., G
Courtney Dahlquist, Trinity, Sr., F.
Journey Thompson, Peters Township, Jr., F
Kaylin Venick, Trinity, Sr., G
Jersey Wise, West Greene, Sr., G
Second Team
Katie Dryer, Avella, So., F
Jill Frazier, Burgettstown, So., G
Clara Paige Miller, Waynesburg, Sr., F
Avana Sayles, Peters Township, Jr., F
Emily Venick, Trinity, Sr., G
Third Team
Anna Durbin, West Greene, Jr., F
Viva Kreis, Belle Vernon, So., G
Kaley Rohanna, Waynesburg, Fr., G
Maddie Webber, South Fayette, So., F
Kendelle Weston, California, Jr., F