Online Exclusive: Thompson Falls downs Troy at districts
Paul Sievers/The Western News Nastassja Hines of the Lady Trojans passes to Jackie Pepiot during the first-round game against Thompson Falls on Friday.
The Troy High School girls basketball team opened the District 7-B Tournament on Thursday night with a 55-36 loss to Thompson Falls but had one of its better performances of the season.
The Lady Trojans led midway through the first quarter and outscored the opponent, 16-11, in the fourth.
“That was the best game of the season by far,” THS first-year coach Neil Newton said. “We had defensive lapses and they capitalized.”
Thompson Falls went on a 12-0 run that started in the first quarter and carried over into the second. By halftime, the Bluehawks held a 24-14 lead.
Troy junior Jackie Pepiot continued her standout play with 17 points on six field goals and 5-of-9 free throws. Pepiot’s back-to-back baskets late in the second kept Troy within striking distance.
“Jackie had another great game,” Newton said. “For a lot of these girls, it’s the first tournament they’ve ever been to.”
Pepiot opened the second half with a hoop to bring Troy to within 24-16. But the Bluehawks countered with a 14-0 run to pull away and put the game out of reach. Thompson Falls senior Kyla Molzhon sparked the scoring streak with five straight baskets.
Although the hole was deep, the Lady Trojans put together a 10-0 run to get the deficit below 20. With 36 seconds left in the third, Pepiot scored while getting fouled and hit the free throw. Then in the fourth, freshman Jordan Williams hit a 3-pointer just 17 seconds in and soon after both Pepiot and Williams sank free throws to cut the Bluehawk lead to 44-27.
Pepiot and Alyssa Olds followed up with more free throws later in the quarter to get the team to within 15. Thompson Falls regained its composure late and ended up with the 19-point victory.
Molzhon finished with 21 points for the Lady Bluehawks.
The Lady Trojans (0-19) fall into a consolation bracket game at 9 a.m. Saturday at the Troy Activity Center against the loser of a Friday game between Bigfork and Mission.
Thompson Falls 55, Troy 36
Scoring by Quarters:
T. Falls 14 10 20 11—55
Troy 6 8 6 16—36
THOMPSON FALLS (55)
Molzhon 9 3-4 21, Peters 1 0-0 2, Becker 2 0-0 4, Cavill 6 1-2 13, Fitchett 2 4-4 9, Vaught 2 0-0 4, Ried 1 0-0 2. Totals 23 8-10 55.
TROY (36)
Pepiot 6 5-9 17, Klin 3 0-2 6, Olds 1 3-4 5, Williams 2 2-2 8. Totals 12 10-17 36.