MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — It was a tough, but expected, beginning to the season for the Trinity boys’ basketball team. The Warriors lost 12 seniors from last year’s state semifinal squad and needed to introduce more than half their team to varsity basketball.
After seven games, Trinity looked like a team in the midst of a rebuild, starting 1-6 and losing by an average of 11 points. There were heart-breaking one-point losses to Clay-Battelle and Grafton, but also blowouts to Wheeling Central and Notre Dame.
However, a corner may have been turned — the Warriors have won three straight, including avenging their loss to the Cee-Bees. The other two wins came against Madonna and Moorefield, and it’s not hard to figure out why Trinity has made the turnaround it has.
Fletcher Hartsock, one of the few returners with any experience, is averaging 27 points and nine rebounds over the last five games. As a senior on a inexperienced team, Hartsock is coming into his own, and it’s exactly what the Warriors (4-6) needed.
“Fletch as been a great leader for this young team,” coach John Fowkes said. “He never takes a bad shot and is very receptive to coaching and takes accountability for himself. Fletch has really developed his game all around. He can shoot, pass and take guys off the dribble. He’s worked very hard on his game and is all in every day.”
A philosophical change in Trinity’s offensive sets, allowing Hartsock to get the ball on the perimeter, has helped not only Hartsock’s ability to score, but also the Warriors’ overall game plan. He can see the floor better, which helps his teammates get more involved if Hartsock is the center of the defense’s attention.
But the season didn’t start out that way for Hartsock. It took some coaxing from the coaching staff to make him the focal point of the offense.
“I’ve been moved out to the perimeter to where I can take people off the dribble and also use the screen and role,” Hartsock said. “Overall, we are running our sets, moving the ball a lot better and just finding the open man in transition, which has been key to our success. We have a lot of guys that can score but we aren’t afraid to pass it to get the best shot in the possession.”
It took a while for the young players to realize how important team basketball can be at the varsity level, especially since many made the jump from middle school. Slowly morphing into a complete team, Hartsock credits his teammates for listening to what the coaches are preaching.
The trio of Hartsock, Seth Goins and Carter Anderson is also starting to jell together.
“My teammates are super unselfish and are always looking for the one more pass when I’m diving to the bucket,” he said. “A lot of teams too have been doubling Seth or Carter, which leaves me open to score. After [the Wheeling Central loss], coach told me I need get the ball in my hands more and he switched the offense up, too. It’s all thanks to my amazing coaches and teammates for sure.”
Trinity will travel to Cameron on Wednesday. Tip off is set for 7:30 p.m.
