Hardwood Heroes Sports
Trimble Wins First District Tournament Game Since 2006
By: Bryan Kurp
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JACKSON, Ohio- 14 years. That’s how long it’s been since the Trimble Lady Tomcats have won a game in the district playoffs.
With a team full of underclassmen, playing in its first district tournament since 2010, the Lady Tomcats had a slow start on Saturday against New Boston. The Lady Tigers were bidding for an upset of the three seed as they held a 21-19 lead at the half.
“I think the girls needed to catch their breath for a minute,” Trimble head coach Joe Richards said. “We talked a little bit at halftime about cleaning up the offensive rebounds and getting the ball into [Jayne Six] at halftime. We made some good adjustments and they executed it well.”
Jayne Six was held scoreless in the first half but made a big difference down low for the Lady Tomcats. Six finished the day with a double-double as she scored 11 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.
“We told [Six] to make sure [New Boston] doesn’t push you out [of the paint],” Richards said. “We did a lot better job of getting her the ball in the second half. She had her feet and her body underneath her and she’s pretty successful when that happens.”
That adjustment ultimately led to the Lady Tomcats outscoring New Boston 25-13 in the second half.
Trimble (19-5) rode a big second half from Six to a district semifinal victory over New Boston (15-9), 44-34. This marked the Lady Tomcats’ first district tournament victory since defeating Portsmouth Clay in the 2006 tournament.
Laikyn Imler led the way for the Lady Tomcats with 18 points, including 12 in the first half. Emily Young also found double figures with 10 points.
Lexus Oiler scored her 1,000th career point for New Boston in the first quarter. Oiler led the Lady Tigers with 12 points.
Trimble goes for the district title on Thursday against Peebles. Tip-off is set for 8:15 p.m. at Jackson High School.
“The intensity is ramped up, even from the sectional,” Richards said. “The sectional was a whole new level from the regular season and now we get into districts, it’s a whole new level. We’ll hopefully be more ready and more focused come Thursday night against Peebles.”