By Drew Terhall

DailyAdvocate.com

UNION CITY — Tri-Village High School girls basketball traveled to Mississinawa Valley High School and won their first conference game of the season, 73-40.

Head coach Brad Gray said he was happy with how his team responded after a close win on Nov. 19 against Fairbanks. After reviewing that film yesterday, the team seemed to determined play with energy for all four quarters.

“I’m really pleased and happy our kids came out and played with the energy that they played with. Even though we started slow, it wasn’t because of a lack of energy,” Gray said.

The game started out with both teams running up and down the court to maintain a high pace of play. Tri-Village seemed more comfortable with the pace.

Mississinawa Valley held strong, but had some mental errors during the first half. They had some trouble with the Lady Patriots press and were committing unusual turnovers.

Despite not being in a rhythm, the Lady Blackhawks were only down 36-22 at halftime. They had moments where they were able to get something going on offense.

For Tri-Village, they had their ups and downs but remained calm. They were able to get out in transition and score quickly.

Mississinawa Valley head coach Michael Paige said the experience Tri-Village has on their roster right now showed up in the second half.

“It was a situation where maturity kicked in and experience kicked in. Tri-Village is a lot more mature and a lot more experienced than us,” Paige said.

For Tri-Village, it was their three seniors who stepped up big in the second half. Rylee Sagester, Morgan Hunt and Torie Richards all played key roles in the win. Richards set the tone for the defense as Sagester and Hunt started the offense up in transition.

Gray said those three players will be relied on heavily during the early part of the season as they let most of the roster get used to the varsity level. It may not be long before the whole team can come together and play their best basketball.

“We need these three to carry us right now until these others can kind of get a feeling for it. The good thing is I think they’re starting to, quicker than I anticipated they would. I really like how our freshmen are starting to do things and not just conciede everything to the seniors,” Gray said.

For Mississinawa Valley, most of their production came from sophomores and freshmen. Paige said the team is still getting used to playing together and going up against experienced teams.

Young players like freshman Brooklynn Seubert and sophomore Syenna Purdin all stepped up in this game. It will take varsity experience before they can reach their ceiling.

Sophomore Taylee Woodbury is the leader of the Lady Blackhawks offense. Paige said she is still learning about the game at a varsity level. She was great at the varsity level last season, but there’s still more to learn.

“She’s so athletic. Right now, she wants to just go faster, faster and faster. Sometimes she has to slow down and run the offense and call the plays. Once she learns that, we’re going to be really good,” Paige said.

After three quarters, Tri-Village broke open the game leading 59-29. The three-point shots kept falling for the Lady Patriots as the Lady Blackhawks were struggling with getting their offense going.

Sagester finished the game with 26 points. Hunt finished with 20+ as well with 23 points. Richards finished with 12 points.

For Mississinawa Valley, Woodbury led the team with 14 points. Purdin finished with 10 points.

The Lady Patriots will host Trotwood Madison on Nov. 26 for their next game. It is set for a 2:15 p.m. tipoff.

Mississinawa Valley will wait until Nov. 28 for their next game as they host Fort Recovery. Game is set for a 7:15 p.m. tipoff.

Contact Daily Advocate sports editor Drew Terhall at [email protected]