Mercy routs Trumbull to reach state final; Santoro nets 25

BRANFORD — Trumbull broke Mercy’s hearts last season, edging the Tigers in overtime to punch their ticket to Championship Saturday.

One year later, the Tigers returned the favor.

In the second semifinal meeting in as many years between Mercy and Trumbull, Isabella Santoro and Co. had all the answers. The second-seeded Tigers defeated the third-seeded Eagles 62-46 in the Class LL semifinals on Friday.

“It feels amazing,” said Santoro, the Tigers’ star guard who led all scorers with 25 points. “I honestly can’t describe it right now. I’m in shock, but I’m not at the same time because I know we worked very hard for this.”

There was never any doubt from Mercy (26-1). The SCC champions set the tone from the start, racing out to a commanding 13-3 lead in the opening quarter. They showed they weren’t fazed by Trumbull’s highly acclaimed defense, hitting an array of highly contested shots.

“Mercy played very, very well tonight. They shot lights out,” Trumbull coach Steve Tobitsch said. “We tried to mix in some different things.”

Most of what the Eagles tried did not work. They had no answer for Santoro, who sank three of the Tigers’ seven shots from beyond the arc. Meghan DeVille added 17 points.

“The whole team

Mercy will play fifth-seeded Hall — a 56-54 overtime winner over Enfield in Friday’s other semifinal — next weekend at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville.

played well from top to bottom,” Mercy coach Tim Kohs said.

Mercy will play fifthseeded Hall — a 56-54 overtime winner over Enfield in Friday’s other semifinal — next weekend at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville.

Trumbull was able to trim what was a 14-point lead down to 11 at halftime, 29-18, but the Tigers dominated the action in the second half. They outscored the Eagles 18-5 in the third quarter to earn their first trip to the state finals since 2013.

The Eagles had hoped to write a different ending to this season after losing to New London last year in the state finals. However, they’ll finish the year having fallen a few steps short despite a stellar resume: a 26-2 record and an FCIAC championship.

Mercy was just better Friday night.

The Tigers led 47-23 after three quarters. Trumbull was able to cut that lead to under 20 before the Tigers put the game away.

Aisling Maguire led Trumbull with 12 points. Julie Keckler added eight points.