If the Triton Hawks were feeling good off their 58-23 takedown of the Western Harnett Eagles last Tuesday, their most recent game may have dampened their spirits a bit. Triton took a 44-36 hit to the loss column at the hands of Pine Forest on Monday. The game was a 16-16 toss-up at halftime, but Triton couldn't quite close it out.
Triton lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Nashara McNeil-Watlington, who scored 24 points. McNeil-Watlington is trending in the right direction, as she's improved her point production for three games straight. Another player making a difference was Iliana Eason, who scored five points along with seven rebounds and three blocks.
Triton struggled to get the ball back on offense and finished the game with only four offensive rebounds. They were crushed by their opponents in that department as Pine Forest pulled down 12 offensive rebounds.
Pine Forest's success was the result of a balanced attack that saw several players step up, but Chloe Wilson led the charge by dropping a double-double on 12 points and ten rebounds. Wilson has been hot recently, having posted two or more steals the last 13 times she's played. Janaea Conley was another key contributor, scoring 13 points along with six steals.
Triton has been struggling recently as they've lost four of their last five contests, which put a noticeable dent in their 12-10 record this season. As for Pine Forest, their win bumped their record up to 10-12.
Triton will be playing in front of their home fans against Overhills at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday. Overhills is strutting with some offensive muscle, as they've averaged 51.6 points per game this season. As for Pine Forest, they won't have much time to rest: their next contest is against Harnett Central at 6:00 p.m. on February 13th. Harnett Central comes in on a streak of failing to score more than 18 points in their last four games, a trend the team is of course eager to reverse.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
