After an up and down start to the season in nonconference play, the Triton girls basketball team had a chance to start over again on Wednesday night, hosting LaVille at the Trojan Trench for the team’s Hoosier North Athletic Conference opener. It wasn’t pretty for a good chunk of the game, but the Lady Trojans were able to erase a late deficit before winning 49-34 in overtime.
The strategy for the visitors was apparent early on: move the ball around the court, take your time and take the best shot available. LaVille was extremely methodical on the offensive side of the ball, burning a ton of clock on each possession to slow the game down to nearly a halt before catching Triton off guard and taking advantage with an open look.
This, coupled with the fact that despite being the smaller team, the Lancers were able to dominate the offensive glass in the first half, led to LaVille taking a commanding 8-0 lead early on in the game.
Midway through the first quarter, Triton finally got its first points to fall on a layup by Sydney King. This would be just the beginning for King, as the junior would get it going from deep, hitting a couple of big threes to go on an 8-0 run by herself to tie the game up. After the game’s first period, the two teams were tied at 8-8 after each going on an extended run.
The game’s second quarter featured the same type of low-scoring approach the first did, with the score remaining at 8-8 for the first three minutes of the period before the Lancers were finally able to get a shot to go. This first made shot energized the visitors, who were able to take advantage of a dysfunctional Triton offense and open up a lead once again.

    Triton junior Sydney King works to fend off LaVille defenders during the first quarter. Photo by Gary Nieter

The Lady Trojans were finally able to get onto the scoreboard once again with just three minutes until halftime on another three from King, giving her the team’s first eleven points in the game. The game remained a defensive battle until halftime, where it looked as if the visitors would take a 15-11 lead. However, a foul was called against LaVille with no time left on the clock, sending Addyson Viers to the free throw line. The senior would split her two attempts, making it a three-point game while finally becoming a player other than King to put the ball into the basket for Triton.
After getting one to go to end the first half, Viers came out looking for more in the second, scoring her team’s first five points to help retake the lead. The Lady Trojan advantage wouldn’t last long though, as on the next possession, the Lancers would tie it right back up at 17 all, where the score would sit for some time.
Because scoring was so hard to come by in this one, the two teams hardly ever strayed more than a possession away from each other. When one side was able to jump back out in front, the other was quick behind them to tie the game back up again. Just as King had helped her team stay afloat in the first, Viers was now doing the same in the second half. If the ball wasn’t going to her, the rest of the offense was struggling to figure it out.
Late in the third, the Lancers finally found the run they were searching for, flipping the once razor-thin game on its head with a barrage of three pointers. With the Lady Trojans still struggling to get it going, LaVille was able to take advantage, hitting a flurry of shots in just a few moments to catapult the lead up to 10 points. In the quarter’s final seconds, Avery Viers was able to knock down a pair of free throws to become the third Triton player to score as well as cut the lead down to eight heading into the fourth.
Jocelynn Faulkner became the fourth player in the beginning of the final period, hitting a three in the opening seconds while also being fouled to make it a four-point play, cutting the deficit in half immediately. This was enough to spark a fire underneath Triton, as the team had found that playing aggressively was leading to the results they wanted. Players started getting to the free throw line and converted their attempts. Before long, it was a one-possession game once again.
The game continued to be a two-point affair as time continued to wind down. With just over a minute and a half left, Viers was able to tie up the game after getting an offensive rebound and put back to go. Both teams had a series of chances to get in front in the game’s final minute, but it was Triton who had the final opportunity with 10 seconds left. The final play did not work the way it was intended, and a last second shot by Sierra Hawley was off the mark, meaning overtime was on the horizon.
OT started off with a bang, as Faulkner drained her second three of the night to give Triton a three-point advantage right off the bat. The Lady Trojan defense was now firing on all cylinders, holding the Lancers to just one shot per possession, if that. As time continued to wind down, the Triton lead continued to grow, and after another offensive rebound and bucket from Viers, Triton was up eight with just over a minute left to play. By the time the game had ended, the Lady Trojans were celebrating a double-digit victory.
Viers finished her evening with a monster double-double, scoring 20 points and 13 rebounds. King finished with 12 points and six boards. Faulkner added nine points while Hawley scored five and added eight rebounds.
Triton (3-5, 1-0 HNAC) plays its next game on Saturday at home against Knox.