HAMLET – A game thought to be a close one turned out to be a blowout win by the Class 1A No. 7 Triton girls basketball team Friday night at Oregon-Davis High School. The Argos Lady Dragons (13-9) entered its Sectional 51 semifinal game against the Lady Trojans (16-5) ranked just outside the top 10, but were overwhelmed in a 62-41 rout. Triton now takes on No. 3 Oregon-Davis in tonight's championship game, slated for 7 p.m. (EDT). The meeting will mark the sixth-straight season the two have met in the sectional, with Triton knocking the Lady Bobcats off in the sectional final a year ago. Against Argos, a team Triton downed 53-45 on Nov. 15 in Bourbon, the Lady Trojans opened the game with a made three-pointer by junior Shana Anderson and never looked back. Using a smothering defense, the Lady Trojans gave the Lady Dragons problems all night and used an 18-3 run between the first and second quarters to go in front 31-13 with 3:22 left in the first half. "We had a lot of time to prepare," said Triton coach Adam Heckaman. "We got the bye, and I wasn't sure if I liked that or not. I kind of wanted to play early in the week to knock the rust off. The last time we played was last Friday, so I was a little nervous about that, because (Argos) looked real good Tuesday against South Central (winning 60-36). I think, defensively, we came out and threw them off a little bit." Sophomore point guard Taylor Hatfield helped to keep the Lady Dragons off-balance, penetrating the lane routinely, resulting in four different trips to the free throw line in the opening half. The aggressiveness worked as Hatfield netted 13 points on 3-of-3 shooting from the field and making 7 of 8 from the free-throw line. "That's one thing we've really focused on the last couple of weeks — really getting our guards to go to the basket and not just settle for jump shots," Heckaman said. "They've done a great job of doing that, getting in there and getting to the free-throw line, getting some confidence early. When that happens, defenses start to collapse and that opens up shots for (freshman) Kylie (Mason), Shana and the other guards. " And Mason was getting some open looks, and making them count. Scoring a game-high 17 points, Mason went 5 of 5 from behind the three-point line, as her only misses of the night were the three shots she took inside the arc. "Kylie can score," Heckaman said about the 5-foot-5 guard that also had four rebounds, three steals and two assists off the bench. "She knows she has the green light. She struggled during stretches this year, as far as her outside shot, but she's learning she can get to the basket. That was a thing she may not have been sure of early in the season, but now, she's doing that and giving her a little more confidence." Triton's balanced offense was on full display once again, as five different girls scored at least seven points. Senior Megan Howdeshell had 10 points, junior Breanna Lemler scored eight and Anderson finished with seven. "Our offense is going to vary each night," Heckaman said. "Shana's gonna get some, Megan's gonna get some, Kylie, Taylor, Mallorie (Jennings) are going to hit some shots. At this point in the season, they're all understanding what they need to do for us to be successful. " That mindset's going to need to continue against a Lady Bobcats team that had won the sectional crown four-straight times before losing to Triton last season. "They're a good ballclub," Heckman said about O-D. "They're ranked third in the state for a reason. We've come a long way this season too. Our young girls are starting to learn what they need to do." During the season, Triton fell 48-45 to Oregon-Davis in Hamlet.
