Jan 25, 2023 4 min read

Name: Eden Williamson

School: Trinity

Class: Senior

Sport: Basketball

Williamson’s week: The veteran point guard played a vital role in the Hillers avoiding their first three-game losing streak in more than four years.

Scoring a game-high 25 points, Williamson powered Trinity (4-1, 9-5) to an important section victory, 58-46, over Lincoln Park. A majority of her points came at the foul line in the chippy, physical game in which second place in the Class 5A Section 4 standings was on the line. She made 19 of 23 free throws.

“It’s definitely the most free throws I’ve ever shot in a game,” Williamson joked. “It was just very physical with a lot of fouls. It was just about muscle memory at the free-throw line and shutting your brain off.”

Later in the week, Williamson led more of a balanced effort from the Hillers against rival Chartiers Valley, which is now out of their section. She was one of four players for Trinity in double figures with 22 points in the 79-59 win.

The road victory over Lincoln Park halted a two-game losing skid where Trinity was drubbed by South Fayette and West Virginia power Wheeling Park, 47-25 and 74-44, respectively. Williamson scored a team-high 11 points in the loss to Wheeling Park.

The last time the Hillers lost three straight games was a week-long stretch against North Catholic, North Allegheny and Chartiers Valley after Christmas in 2018.

“The South Fayette loss was tough, and after the game on Monday (against Wheeling Park) we all sat down together to talk about where we were going to go from there,” Williamson said. “We weren’t playing like ourselves. People were searching rather than doing what they were comfortable with, myself included. We weren’t playing to our individual strengths. There is never one specific thing that can fix a 30-point loss. We had to find ourselves again.”

The losses left a bad taste for Williamson, who had been starting games for Trinity since her freshman year.

“That hasn’t been the standard for this basketball program,” Williamson said. “We never want to lose like that. It’s absolutely miserable. We knew we had to get better. Something had to change. We came out, had faith in one another and pulled off two big wins.”

New York state of mind: While Williamson still has lofty goals for the remainder of her high school career, she has committed to play basketball at New York University in the heart of New York City.

The Violets are ranked sixth in Division III by D3hoops.com.

“It’s such a great program. I can’t say enough about their staff,” Williamson said. “The first-ever school I visited was in New York City (not NYU). I realized I wanted to be in the city. They play a similar style with pushing the ball and playing at a fast pace, similar to what we do (at Trinity).”

It wasn’t just athletics that enticed Williamson to NYU. A highly prestigious academic school was a big draw as Williamson aims at being named Trinity’s valedictorian while on pace for a 5.0 grade-point average.

“I just took my official visit last weekend,” Williamson said. “At that point, when academics, athletics and a great staff all combine, it was a no-brainer.”

Compiled by Luke Campbell

Compiled by Luke Campbell

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