TORONTO — It took a quarter for the Toronto girls basketball team to kick it into high gear against East Palestine.

Toronto trailed by four at the end of the first quarter, but the Red Knights outscored the Bulldogs, 17-0, in the second and did not look back en route to a 55-22 victory in a varsity-only game Wednesday night on senior night inside the George J. Kunzler Memorial Gymnasium.

“We talked before the game about how the result of our last game was not going to happen again,” Toronto (9-11) head coach Rusty Hodgkiss said. “East Palestine came to play. They were beating us to loose balls. They were getting offensive rebounds. They took it to us.

“We switched our defense to something we like to do but we haven’t been able to do because of our lack of numbers. We were able to get going in transition, and once we get going in transition, we are hard to stop.

“JJ Rebich and Olivia Owings played fantastic tonight in the second quarter. The big turnaround that happened was because of those two have improved a lot.”

A run at the end of the first quarter enabled the girls from Columbiana County to take a 10-6 lead into the second. Unfortunately for the Brown-and-Orange, the rest of the game belonged to the girls from the Gem City.

Thanks to a 17-0 second quarter, Toronto built a 23-10 advantage at halftime, and the Red-and-White remained in control in the second half as the girls from Jefferson County outscored the visitors, 32-12 after halftime.

The hosts took a 40-17 lead into the fourth before outscoring the Bulldogs, 15-5, in the final quarter on their way to a 33-point win.

Tatum Derrington tallied a game-high 15 points to lead the way offensively for Toronto, while Rebich recorded nine – on three 3-pointers – and Jayna Reeves and Maddy Yost each collected eight.

Jacklyn Ogle led the way for East Palestine (5-17) with seven points.

The victory enabled the Red Knights to sweep the seasons series from the Bulldogs. Toronto defeated East Palestine, 41-6, Dec, 4. on the road in the two team’s first meeting of the season.

“Everybody progresses throughout the season,” Hodgkiss said. “They have improved a lot. That first game was early in the season. I think they were having some trouble with their heater in the school. Their gym was freezing. It was a weird night.

“Give East Palestine credit. When it came to our slow start, they played a part in that.”

Prior to the start of the game, Toronto honored its two seniors – Derrington and Yost.

“Maddy Yost is new to our school and new to our program,” Hodgkiss said. “She was at East Liverpool prior to coming here. I think she grew up playing in our youth league. I wish I had her in our program for all four years. She has a bright personality. She is a joy to be around. She brings a lot of positive energy to the gym every day.

“She sang the National Anthem before the game. She has been asking to sing the National Anthem. She told me she has a pretty good singing voice. She sang the National Anthem today, and we started crying. We started slow today, and I don’t know if it was because of that, but she really did a fantastic job.

“Tatum Derrington is one of those people who are irreplaceable. She shows up every day. She works. She is not a rah-rah type. She doesn’t yell at her teammates. She does not demand the ball.

“Everything we do offensively is because of her. She leads us in assists, scoring, rebounding and blocks. She is second in steals. She is a better person than she is a basketball player. She is one of the best basketball players I have had at Toronto. If I had to make a starting five for Toronto for my nine years, she is in it.”

Toronto is scheduled to play Southern Local today on the road in the OVAC Class 2A Consolation Final.

“The girls have done a fantastic job,” Hodgkiss said. “You can see how much our younger girls have improved. They have improved exponentially. They can see the floor. They are making good decisions with the ball. Josie Dickinson sees the floor really well. Jayna Reeves sees the floor well. The girls have really improved. I am really proud of them.”

East Palestine – the No. 32 seed – is slated to play No. 14 seed Dalton in an Ohio Division VI Northeast District game at 1 p.m. Feb. 15 on the road.

Toronto 55, East Palestine 22

East Palestine 10 0 7 5 – 22

Toronto 6 17 17 15 – 55

EAST PALESTINE (5-17): Ogle 3 0-0 7, Kridler 1 1-2 4, Dyke 1 0-0 2, Jurjavcic 1 0-0 2, Gingher 0 0-2 0, Blythe 2 0-2 4, Magness 0 0-0 0, Andre 2 0-0 4. TOTALS: 10 1-6 22.

TORONTO (9-11): Derrington 6 2-2 15, Sapp 1 0-0 2, Bailey 1 0-0 2, Piatt 0 0-0 0, Reeves 2 3-6 8, Rebich 3 0-2 9, Yost 4 0-0 8, Dickinson 2 1-2 5, Owings 3 0-0 6. TOTALS: 22 6-12 55.

3-POINTERS: East Palestine 1 (Ogle); Toronto 5 (Rebich 3, Derrington, Reeves)