Mar 11, 2021 4 min read

The title game everybody expected is now official.

The WPIAL 5A girls basketball championship matchup will be Trinity and Chartiers Valley. The former is ranked No. 1 in 5A, and the latter is No. 2.

The opposing coaches are brother and sister.

The Hillers ended the Colts’ 64-game winning streak back in January, and Chartiers Valley dashed Trinity’s dreams in last year’s district title game.

This heavyweight clash has felt like a formality for some time, and Thursday night the inevitable became reality.

In Bridgeville, Chartiers Valley took care of No. 6 Latrobe, 59-43.

In Washington, coach Kathy McConnell-Miller’s Hillers beat No. 5 Woodland Hills, 74-53, setting up a title game rematch.

Courtney Dahlquist scored a game-high 22 points, and four other Hillers (21-1) scored in double figures. Alyssa Clutter scored 12, and Kaylin Venick, Ashley Durig and Eden Williamson each added an even 10.

In two seasons under McConnell-Miller, who succeeded Bob Miles in 2019, the Hillers are 42-6.

“It’s a credit to the players,” McConnell-Miller said. “It’s a credit to the players who I inherited. Their overall development. The fact that they bought into each other and, you know, the chemistry is really undeniable. It’s super exciting to watch. I’ve enjoyed it, and I told them in the locker room, I’m just blessed to be a part of their journey.”

For the second year in a row, Trinity’s semifinal win came at the expense of the Wolverines (13-7). Woodland Hills fell behind 19-0 in the first quarter, and although they continued to fight, outscoring the Hillers 22-11 for the rest of the half, coach Von Pitts’ squad never fully recovered.

Trinity’s biggest issue was foul trouble. Clutter picked up three in the first half. Sisters Emily and Kaylin Venick ended the night with four, as did Durig. The bright side, however, McConnell-Miller said, was that this allowed Trinity to give its starters a breather, as well as make room for the bench to shine. Eden Williamson, in particular, took advantage, scoring 10 off the bench.

“I thought Eden gave us great minutes, defensively and offensively” McConnell-Miller said. With the foul trouble, we were able to rest some players and get people with some fresh legs. So that was good to see.”

Last season was the first time anybody on Trinity’s current roster had played in a WPIAL title game. Now, the Hillers are more experienced, with four of their five starters being seniors, and the other, Alyssa Clutter, a junior. Trinity expects to go into Monday night less gun shy than they were a year ago.

“We have confidence,” Kaylin Venick said. “We’re going into this game with a lot more confidence than we did last year. We’re not relying on one person, two people to do the job. We know that we have a steady team. We have a solid bench. We have all the pieces… we just have to put it all together.”

For Woodland Hills, Peyton Pinkney led with 14 points. Jazmine Dunn added 12 and Hope Hawkins 11.

Now, the focus turns to Char Valley, and everybody who watches the game will expect a show.

“I just think (these are) two really good basketball teams,” McConnell-Miller said. “I think the team that comes in and makes shots and doesn’t turn the ball over, rebounds the ball, is efficient offensively, takes care of business on the defensive end (will win.)

Three of Trinity’s six losses in the McConnell-Miller era have been to brother Tim and Char Valley. To avoid a repeat of last year, McConnell-Miller knows there isn’t much room for mistakes.

“There’s too many talented players on that floor to not come in and give it your very best,” she said.

Last year, Trinity punched its ticket to the Peterson Events Center on a neutral site, beating Woodland Hills at Mt. Lebanon. This year, the teams were the same, but the venue, as well as a million other things, are different. As a result, Trinity got to advance on its home court.

The setting for this year’s title matchup will be different as well, going from “The Pete” to Peters Township High School. One thing that Trinity expects to stay the same, however, is Chartiers Valley being hard to handle.

“They’re a great team,” Venick said. “They have all the right pieces, just as we do. It’s always a great game against them. I think just going into the game we just have to have confidence, and wake up that day knowing and believing that we can beat them and we can come out WPIAL champions.”