Searching for its first win of the season, the Triton girls basketball team welcomed their neighbors to the west, Plymouth, to the Trojan Trench Thursday night. The first half was incredibly competitive and featured multiple lead changes, but it was all Lady Pilgrims in the second half as the visitors picked up a 45-30 win.
From the opening tip, Plymouth the Lady Pilgrims showed that they were not messing around defensively, employing a press from the first possession onward. The Lady Trojans did well to break it initially, with Sydney King opening the scoring for the home side on their first trip down the court. Those would be the only points for a while though, as Plymouth was able to use that defense to create some easy offense, opening up an 8-2 lead three minutes in.
Triton did well to not let things get out of hand early, as a big three from King and a pair of free throws by Avery Viers kept the Lady Trojans within four with three minutes to go in the opening period. The home defense was beginning to give the visitors a taste of their own medicine, forcing a plethora of turnovers that led to a long stretch without a bucket for Plymouth. The Lady Trojans had many opportunities here to take a lead of their own, but they were unable to convert their shots.
A second corner three from King with 20 seconds to go in the quarter were the only points scored in the final three minutes of action, but it was enough to close out the period on an 8-3 run that made it a one-point game with Plymouth up 11-10 going into the second.
Scoring continued to be difficult for both sides as the next quarter got going, with the first bucket of the period, a three by the Lady Pilgrims, came almost two and a half minutes in. Triton freshman Gracie Riffle answered moments later with a three of her own to make it a one-point affair once more.
Once again, the Lady Trojans had multiple opportunities to take their first lead of the game. Finally, with three minutes to go in the first half, Mylie Groves banked in a three to put her team in front by two. After a white-hot start to the game, Plymouth had scored just six points in ten minutes of action.
The Lady Trojan advantage was short lived, as the Lady Pilgrims responded with a triple of their own after a quick timeout. Similar to the end of the first quarter, Triton closed out the second with a bucket in the final 30 seconds, this time a putback layup by Savannah Hawley. This time, Plymouth would be the time to hit the final shot, as the visitors nailed a three in the corner to take a 20-18 lead into the half.

    Senior Sydney King of Triton goes up for a shot under the basket during Thursday night's home game against Plymouth...Nieter

The beginning of the third quarter belonged solely to Plymouth, as the visitors scored six quick points in the first minute and a half to take an eight-point lead, their largest of the game so far. Not long afterwards, the Lady Pilgrims were able to go up by double digits to really put the pressure on Triton.
The Lady Trojans struggled to come up with an answer, often turning the ball over before they could get any shots up. On the other side, shots continued to fall for the visitors as the run continued. Most of these shots were coming from the outside, growing the Plymouth lead in a hurry.
With just two points in the first six minutes of the quarter, the Lady Trojans now found themselves down by 13 with momentum completely against them. They were able to get it back momentarily on a big three by Groves that cut the deficit to nine, but the Lady Pilgrims quickly answered with a triple on the other end to get it back up to 12. That's where things would stay as the fourth quarter got going, with Triton having a tough hill to climb to make a comeback.
Having employed the press for the entire game to this point, it continued to get stronger for Plymouth. Triton was struggling to make it past half court after made shots by the visitors, preventing them from doing anything in the form of a comeback. With five and a half minutes to go in the game, the home side had made just one point of progress, now trailing by eleven.
The Lady Pilgrims had plenty of chances to add onto their lead and put things away for good, but were unable to do so. On the other side, this allowed the Lady Trojans to shrink that lead multiple times, but they also were having trouble offensively. Three minutes now remained and the home side was still down double figures.
With time ticking away, Plymouth was content to dribble around the perimeter and melt some clock. The visitors’ ball movement was crisp, and the game of keep away they were playing with Triton was incredibly effective. Time continued to melt away, and the Lady Trojans were unable to get any closer.
Triton (0-5) is at home Saturday against Wawasee.