GREAT START — Edison girls basketball coach Mark Smyth talks with his team during a timeout on Monday. Edison beat Toronto to improve to 7-0. - Aaron Petchal

RICHMOND — The Edison girls’ basketball team used its pressure defense to create its offense against Toronto.

The Wildcats got off to a bit if a slow start from the floor against the Red Knights, however, Edison was able to force Toronto to commit multiple turnovers and the Wildcats took full advantage as Edison rolled to a 61-36 victory in a varsity-only game Monday night out at the Edison Fieldhouse.

“Toronto has a nice team,” Edison (7-0) head coach Mark Smyth said. “Rusty does a great job. Our starters did a great job. Our second team came in and filled in really well. I was really happy with how we played in the first half. We played with energy on offense and on defense. I am proud of the girls. I have an experienced team. They have been doing a lot of the same things for a long time. They understand gaps and how to go get steals.”

The Wildcats led by as many as 33 points in the third quarter.

“They are really good,” Toronto (2-6) head coach Rusty Hodgkiss said. “I think the world of Coaches Smyth and their family. I think the world of their program. Mark does a fantastic job. When you have been doing this as long as I have, you know what it is going to happen. You know what they are going to do, but there is nothing you can do about it. They are well coached.

“The speed they move with on offense and defense is incredible. They move the ball well. They shoot the ball well. They rebound well. They’re good.”

Toronto had difficulty handling Edison’s pressure defense as the visitors committed 29 turnovers in the game. The Wildcats committed 17.

The victors built a 10-1 advantage in the first before the girls in red cut their deficit down to four. The hosts responded and took a 16-8 lead into the second.

The Wildcats pulled away at that point.

Edison began the quarter on a 22-2 run to extend their advantage out to 38-10. The Wildcats led 42-17 going into the locker room at halftime. The big run was keyed by four 3-pointers giving the home team an 18-point advantage. The Wildcats were off and running from that point.

Edison increased its advantage to 52-19 in the third before taking a 56-26 lead into the fourth. The girls from the Gem City outscored the girls in white, 10-5, in the fourth to complete the scoring.

Edison dressed and played 17 girls, while Toronto played all six of its available players.

“Our girls are in a peculiar position,” Hodgkiss said. “We can’t do things at varsity speed 5-on-5. I would put nine girls on the court to help us prepare for their press, so we could get an idea of what the speed was going to be like, but we can’t do that.”

The Wildcats received key contributions from many of the girls who saw time in the game.

“We dressed 17 girls, and we played all 17 girls,” Smyth said. “We were able to get a lot of different kids in the game. We have been able to get a lot of kids into varsity games so far this season. These kids are growing up fast. I am excited about our young players. Our younger players are going to see time, and our older kids understand that. With the younger kids getting time, it is going to cut into our older player’s minutes and their averages, but the younger kids playing is good for the program. Our older kids understand that. I have a great group of leaders. They know that this is what is best for us and what is best for the team.”

Senior standout Sophia Henderson scored a team-high 16 points – all of which came in the first half – to lead the way offensively for Edison, while Abby Carpenter contributed 12 and Abby Boka collected nine.

Jayna Reeves recorded a game-high 24 points to lead the way for Toronto, while Lily Sapp and Josey Dickinson each tallied four. Sapp suffered an injury in the second quarter, and she was forced to come out of the game leaving the Red Knights with just five available players.

“That’s tough,” Smyth said. “I give their girls a ton of credit. Dickinson and Reeves, we have been playing against them for a long time. We have had some wars. They play hard. They keep playing the whole time. That’s a credit to Rusty and his staff. I give them all the credit in the world. They play their butts off. We love to play against them. That is a testament to Rusty.”

Hodgkiss said he thinks the 24 points scored by Reeves is a career-high in her high school career.

“She is a really-good player,” Hodgkiss said. “This may sound funny since she scored 24 points, but I don’t think she is aggressive enough. She doesn’t demand the basketball. She sits back and lets the game come to her. We are trying to get her to be more forceful.”

Reeves scored 11 points in the first half before collecting 13 more in the second half.

“I really have a lot of respect for Rusty,” Smyth said. “Rusty does a great job. He’s a great man. There are a lot of coaches in the valley that I respect, and Rusty is right up there.”

Toronto is scheduled to play Wellsville Wednesday on the road at 6 p.m. in a varsity-only game.

Edison is slated to play Buckeye Trail Monday on the road.

Edison 61, Toronto 36

Toronto 8 9 9 10 – 36

Edison 16 26 14 5 – 61

TORONTO (2-6): Sapp 0 4-6 4, Piatt 1 0-0 2, Reeves 6 8-10 24, Bodnar 1 0-0 2, Owings 0 0-0 0, Dickinson 2 0-2 4. TOTALS: 10 12-18 36.

EDISON (7-0): King 1 0-0 2, Boka 2 3-6 9, Pelley 2 0-0 5, A. Casto 1 0-0 2, Shepherd 0 0-0 0, Kireta 0 0-0 0, Carpenter 4 4-4 12, Henderson 5 2-3 16, Cronin 0 0-0 0, Koehnelin 3 0-0 6, Aguilera 0 0-0 0, Wiedaman 0 0-0 0, Glover 3 1-4 7, G. Casto 0 0-0 0, Ault 1 0-0 2. TOTALS: 21 9-16 61.

3-POINTERS: Toronto 4 (Reeves 4); Edison 6 (Henderson 3, Boka 2, Pelley)