Tippecanoe Valley wrapped up its third straight undefeated Three Rivers Conference championship Thursday night with a 61-27 win over Manchester. (Photos by Mike Deak)

AKRON – There were so many different emotions running through the Tippecanoe Valley girls basketball program Thursday night. Amidst the ride of emotions, the Lady Vikes closed out its final home game in top form, winning its third straight Three Rivers Conference championship with a 61-27 dismantling of Manchester.

Sadness – The night began in honor of the senior class, which has come to represent the most successful group in program history. The postseason accolades are well documented, but the four seniors – Meredith Brouyette, Taneisha Brown, Hannah Dunn and Anne Secrest – were announced to the Valley faithful for the final time. An always emotional time, the seniors picked it up with its play to start the game and did a number on a Manchester team that was outmatched from the start.

Sophie Bussard, left, and Taneisha Brown hound Rae Bedke in the first quarter.

“To win out at home like this means a lot to us,” Secrest said. “To win conference three years in a row, it just means a lot to get a win on senior night. I hope that when we leave, we do so with that winning mentality that the players after us continue using.”

Focus – Once the ball actually went into the air, Valley overwhelmed Manchester. Taking a 5-0 lead, Squires head coach Jake Everett had no choice but to call time out just 48 seconds into the game. Valley wouldn’t trail the entire night, and put it to Manchester in the first eight minutes, forcing 10 turnovers and deflecting four other Manchester efforts, taking an 18-7 lead in the process.

Valley deflected two more passes to open the second and scored the quarter’s first seven points for a commanding 25-7 edge. On the night, Valley had 17 steals and forced 23 Manchester turnovers.

“Defensively, if we want to make a run in the state tournament, we have to get after it like we did to start tonight,” said Tippecanoe Valley head coach Chris Kindig. “It was a pretty emotional night for some of these girls. We came out with the right mindset and played well defensively. If you can start on the defensive end and work towards the offensive end, usually you should be OK.”

Killer Instinct – Valley went on an 11-2 run to open the third quarter, helped by a pair of Brouyette jumpers, in effect grabbing the jugular on what became the 28th straight TRC victory for the Vikings. The quartet of seniors never lost a home conference game, merely eighth graders with Southwood won at Valley in 2013, and were freshman in that 2014 loss at Rochester that preceded the current streak. Secrest led the charge with 22 points on 8-10 shooting and added another full sheet of six rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block. Brouyette had 12 points, four steals and three assists. Dunn had two points and three steals. Brown grabbed two rebounds and had an assist.

Meredith Brouyette takes a selfie with a young fan following the win.

The senior class is 82-16 in their career and 34-2 in TRC play, the winningest class in program history.

“We’ve always emphasized winning the Three Rivers title,” noted Kindig, whose team went 9-0 for a third straight year. “To win like that, and especially to do that winning on the road, that says something about these seniors and the younger kids who are behind them. To win games like at Whitko this year, at Rochester last year and some of those close ones the past couple of years, says a lot about where we are at as a program.”

Admiration – These four seniors are still trying to prove something. The West Noble Sectional begins next week, and Valley has the bye which gets them a night off as NorthWood and Wawasee battle Tuesday to figure who the defending sectional champs get in the semi-final. Those not graduating, such as sophomore point guard Sophie Bussard, who scored eight points to go with six rebounds, three steals and three assists, don’t want the season to end ‘early’. Looking to win its third straight sectional championship, Bussard is taking on the role to carry out what the seniors have built.

“I felt like as a team we were as focused as we could be, given it was senior night,” said Bussard as she was signing autographs for kids after the game. “We definitely all look up to these seniors and they definitely mean the world to us. I think coming out and doing well on defense, being able to send them out with a bang was important for us.”

Valley sits at 20-4 on the season, ranked No. 8 in Class 3-A. Manchester (12-10, 4-5 TRC) had Sydney Day lead the squad with 10 points, eight of which came in the first half. The Squires will prepare for Wabash in its game as part of the Class 2-A sectional at Northfield.

The JV game saw Manchester miss five free throws in the final 12 seconds, but gain two offensive rebounds and put away Tippecanoe Valley 32-29. Manchester finished its JV season 16-6 and 9-0 in the TRC.

Hannah Dunn gets a hug from Addy Miller during senior night ceremonies.