By DAVID COLBURN

News editor

The Hillsboro Trojans girls basketball team started fast and finished strong Friday, defeating Nickerson 61-35 at Brown Gymnasium.

The Trojans shackled the Panthers early with strong defense that turned into fast-break opportunities. With Alex Ratzlaff scoring the last 5 points of the first period on two layups and a free throw, Hillsboro had a commanding 19-4 lead.

The lead grew to 18 points, 27-9, with Ratzlaff scoring 6 of her game-high 32 points off two layups and a short jumper. Brooklyn Wiens dropped a 3-pointer, and Ratzlaff closed with 3 free throws for a 33-16 lead at halftime.

Allison Weber got the Trojans started in the second half with a 3-pointer from the corner on an inbounds play. Darcy Heinrichs pulled down a defensive rebound and threw a pass Ratzlaff took in stride for another fast-break layup. The Trojans kept up their pressure defense, and increased the lead to 44-25 going into the final quarter.

Tara Proffitt, Weber, and Ratzlaff keyed a 12-0 run early in the fourth for the Trojans’ biggest lead of the game, 58-30. Elli Wiesbeck picked up Hillsboro’s final bucket in the 61-35 win.

Hillsboro scored 22 points off turnovers, and strong offensive rebounding led to 14 second-chance points. The Trojans shot only 30 percent for the game, but put up 27 more shots than Nickerson.

Ratzlaff led all scorers with 32 points, and grabbed 12 rebounds. Weber scored 8, and Mesa Merrell scored 7. Proffitt led the team in assists with 6.

The Trojans play this week in the Moundridge tournament. After a Tuesday game against Lyons, the Trojans face Inman at 4 p.m. Thursday, and play Moundridge at 7 p.m. Friday. All games are in Moundridge.