The Lions put together some of their best team basketball this weekend when they competed against Valley Forge, North Central University, and Central Bible College. As we are still working together to incorporate our three Spring recruits, it was nice for the team to be able to gage their progress against some teams our own size.

We came out a little slow against Valley Forge women and fell to a 39-24 deficit at half. We were able to regroup at halftime and pick up some lost ground in the second half, just not quite enough to win the game. We came up ten points short in the end to the eventual Classic Champion, the final score being 62-52. “We felt like that was a winnable game for us,” says Coach Nowell. “The girls played hard and continually got better. It showed us where we are in the mix of things since Valley Forge is ranked 7th in the Nation.” Kristin Ayze led the Lions with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 4 blocks, and 3 assists. Shianne Montgomery added 12 points and 7 rebounds, while Quimby Handy scored 11 points and 9 rebounds to help the Lions.

Next, the Lions faced North Central University, their second regional opponent of the season. The Lions battled very hard but found themselves down 36-33 at half. The game was close the entire night, but NCU was able to pull ahead and win by the final score of 71-61. Trinity had 2 girls foul out which really hurt, especially down the stretch when the Lions needed to foul for a chance to stay in the game. The Lions had 4 players in double-figures. Kristin Ayze led the Lions with 19 points, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Quimby Handy added 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists. Shianne Montgomery scored 12 points and grabbed 7 rebounds in the game. Rounding out the scorers in double-figures was Chelsey Eng with 11 points, 4 assists, and 3 steals. JaNae Stevenson chipped in 4 points, but pulled down a team high 11 rebounds.

In the final game, the Lions finished off their busy week with a 60-34 victory over Central Bible College. The Lions jumped out early and the Trinity guards were too much for CBC to handle. The Lions had some great all-around individual efforts in the game. Chelsey Eng recorded a double-double with 17 points and 11 steals. Quimby Handy contributed 16 points, 5 steals, and 3 assists. Kristin Ayze followed with 12 points, 9 rebounds, 4 assists, and 4 steals.

Kristin Ayze was named to the Assemblies of God Credit Union Classic All-Tourney team. For the tournament, Kristin averaged 15.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 2.6 steals, and 2 blocks. Congratulations Kristin on a great tournament!