'We're here to make history': Triway one win away from first district title

STRUTHERS — It was just a matter of time.

Triway didn't have to do much waiting Wednesday, recovering from a slow start to trounce Columbiana 49-25 in the Division III Struthers District semifinals.

Now, the Titans need just one more win for a much longer wait to be over. Triway will play Trinity in Saturday's district title game at 7 p.m. back at Struthers Field House, attempting to become the first team in program history to capture a district championship.

"We're here to make history," Triway senior Aaliyah Wirth said. "It's never happened before in girls basketball to make it all the way (to win a district). We're all super excited after today."

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For a team that's already set a school record for wins (21), including 20 victories in its last 21 games, making more history wouldn't be surprising. Triway looked like a team that could make a run even deeper into the postseason against the Clippers, dominating every aspect of the game after trailing 9-4 a quarter into the contest.

Senior leaders Wirth and Caitlin Titler — two of the most decorated players in Triway history — admitted there were some nerves before the game, knowing what was at stake.

"We were sitting next to each other in the locker room and I said, 'Are you excited?'" Titler said of her pre-game coversation with Wirth. "She said, 'Yeah.' And then she said she was nervous. I was nervous, too."

Playing at the cavernous Struthers Field House was an adjustment for the Titans, too, used to playing at the much more restrictive confines of The Pit.

"It's completely different if you've ever been to The Pit," Titler said. "The Pit is very closed. You're in your own world. Here, everything is open. It's a big change."

But none of that mattered once the second quarter hit, as the Titans embarked on a 18-0 run and never let Columbiana sniff getting back into the game. Even during a night when its offense wasn't totally clicking, the Titans had no trouble extending the lead against their 20-win opponent.

Like they have all year, Wirth and Titler led the way, with Wirth scoring a game-high 16 and Titler adding nine of her own. And they weren't alone, with Sydney Frank and Payton Snyder scoring eight apiece as well. That balance, along with limiting the Clippers to three made field goals over the second and third quarters made for a good winning recipe.

"On film, we saw attacking the bucket off the dribble was the strength of their team," Triway coach Mike Miller said. "We really wanted to take that away. Early on in the game, we were too spread out defensively. We weren't getting proper help. But as the game went on, we got better and better."

Now, all that's left to do is make history, and cement the 2023-24 Titans as perhaps the best Triway girls basketball team ever.

"When we play Saturday, it's a really big deal," Titler said. "I'm hoping Triway will come out and support us all. It's a really big feeling."

This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Girls Hoops: Triway to play for program's first district title