By Todd Fertig
TopSports.news
The Topeka High girls basketball team – made up entirely of freshmen and sophomores – came of age Friday with a come-from-behind 40-33 non-league win over Bonner Springs at High.
Sophomore Keimara Marshall (12) scored 18 points in Topeka High's come-from-behind 40-33 win over Bonner Springs Friday night. [File photo/TSN]
Freshman Ahsieryrhuajh Rayton led Topeka High with 18 points in Friday's 40-33 non-league win over Bonner Springs. [File photo/TSN]
For the young Trojans, going into the break with their second victory of the season felt significant.
“This is special. I think this is motivation going into January,” Topeka High coach Brittney Redmond said. “If you look at our record, I think it’s very deceiving. We’ve played ranked team after ranked team. I think we finally had the chance to put somebody away, and that’s what we did.''
The Trojans fell into deep deficits multiple times in the game only to eventually catch the visiting Braves.
Topeka High fell behind by nine early in the fourth period and that’s when the Trojans made their move.
The Trojans went on an 18-2 run to close out the game, with 11 of those points coming from sophomore Keimara Marshall.
“I just told them, ‘Do not quit,’ ” Redmond said. “Our zone press is probably one of the best I’ve seen, and I told them ‘We’re not going away from it.’ ”
The Trojans dogged Bonner Springs over every inch of the court, but it came with a price.
Freshman Ahsieryrhuajh Rayton picked up three fouls in the first period and another in the second period.
With just eight players in uniform, Rayton had to play through it.
“We’re still learning, and I told them, ‘Hey, if you’ve got two or three fouls, you’ve got to stay. You’ve got to be smart,’ ” Redmond said.
Rayton and Marshall led Topeka High with 18 points apiece.
With the Braves attacking the Trojan ball handlers relentlessly down the stretch, the Topeka High guards kept their poise, limited turnovers, and hit their free throws.
Marshall said she wasn’t surprised the inexperienced Trojans held up under the pressure.
“It’s just trusting our training and trusting your teammates,” Marshall said. “I just referred back to times in practice when we were pushed to not make as many mistakes. We practice for perfection.
“We have a lot to prove. We’re young, so everybody thinks we’re not going to be able to pull a game out, or if we’re down we’re going to stay down. We had to prove them wrong.''
TOPEKA HIGH GIRLS 40, BONNER SPRINGS 33
Bonner Springs 7 7 14 5 -- 33
Topeka High 5 5 12 18 -- 40
Bonner Springs (2-3) – Leslie 0-7 0-0 0, Anderson 3-16 0-0 9, Love 2-4 0-4 4, Thompson 2-7 2-5 6, Sambol 5-11 0-0 11, Buell 0-2 0-0 0, Billings 1-1 1-2 3. Totals: 13-48 3-11 33.
Topeka High (2-4) – Kincaide 1-4 0-0 2, Triplett 0-3 0-0 0, Marshall 8-14 0-1 18, Rayton 6-13 5-6 18, Gotru 1-1 0-0 2, Clanton 0-0 0-0 0, Mayfield 0-0 0-0 0. Totals: 16-35 5-7 40.
3-point goals – Bonner Springs 4 (Anderson 3, Sambol 1), Topeka High 3 (Marshall 2, Rayton 1). Total fouls – Bonner Springs 14, Topeka High 15. Fouled out – None. Technical fouls – Sambol.
