Kylie Mason and the Triton Trojans hope to get out and running this girls basketball season. (Photo by Mike Deak)

BOURBON – There wasn’t much solace on the faces of Triton’s girls basketball team as it walked off the court last year. What was a very solid season still left a bitter taste, and Triton vows to sweeten the pot this season.

On the wrong side of a 38-point loss to Oregon-Davis at the sectional last season, the third time in as many chances Triton lost to O-D during its 17-6 season, coach Adam Heckaman and his girls could only think about next year. Well, the time has come to right the wrongs. And if Triton wants to make any hay this year, O-D will have to be addressed.

“They only graduated one kid from their team last year and will definitely be a favorite in this area,” Heckaman said of O-D. “As far as an equation for beating them or slowing them down, that’s a continuous work in progress.”

Triton can boast of a similar scenario to O-D, graduating just two major players from last year in Shana Anderson and Breanna Lemler. But those two were huge pieces to the puzzle. While tremendous contributors, Heckaman is hoping the returning varsity experience from a core group can make up for the voids.

Two seniors in Taylor Hatfield and Mallorie Jennings, along with juniors Krystal Sellers and Kylie Mason provide a bulk of the varsity experience returning for the blue and gold. Hatfield and Mason both scored around 14 points per contest last year, and the pair of guards filled up the stat lines in steals, assists and rebounds. Mason was a 40 percent three-point shooter (62-156) while Hatfield nailed 29 threes, second on the team.

Jennings is the leading returner in rebounding (4 rpg) and started 22 of the 23 games. Sellers did a lot of the dirty work, leading the team in assists (68), collected 82 rebounds and added 32 steals to her five points per game average.

Senior Allie Kann appeared in 21 games in a reserve role while juniors Hannah Jennings and Becca Kennedy also saw limited action as role players off the bench. Junior Lauren Hostrawser and sophomore Jaela Meister should provide depth to the varsity rotation.

“We graduated two seniors but I feel like we have our deepest team in the last several years,” Heckaman said. “We have several kids from last year’s team that got significant varsity experience.”

That experience will be tested often. O-D will be an issue, with a regular season matchup Jan. 8 plus the possible matchups in the Bi-County Tournament and in Sectional 51. Triton is also continuing its pleasantries with several area big dogs in back-to-back trips to Plymouth and NorthWood later this month, hosting backyard rival Tippecanoe Valley Dec. 11 and visiting Rochester Dec. 18 and Warsaw Jan. 4. Tumble in a tough Northern State Conference schedule that includes a very physical Culver team as well as New Prairie and John Glenn, and Triton will certainly have its plate full.

“I think it’s important to have a schedule that makes you play your best every night,” stated Heckaman. “I feel we learn a great deal by playing the schedule we do and it helps us get better each time out. We have a solid team and the girls are working hard to make sure they are ready to compete each night against whoever our opponent is.”

Triton opens its 2013-14 season Nov. 15 at North Judson.