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Trinity Catholic girls basketball coach Tom Kriz approached the season with trepidation back in November. "I told [athletic director] Tracy Nichols we could lose our first five games of the season,'' Kriz said.
Instead, the Crusaders have established themselves as one of the league's elite teams. Heading into Thursday's contest against Fairfield Warde, the Crusaders stand at 6-0 in the Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference and 6-1 overall. Its only loss was a 57-53 setback to Lauralton Hall.
"I think we're playing good basketball right now,'' says Kriz, a Norwalk resident and the Crusaders' long-time coach. "We're working together on a more consistent basis. We're pleased where we are."
There have been several keys to Trinity's fast start. The first is balance. The Crusaders are not dependent on one player to carry the offensive burden. Teams tend to focus on stopping Mackenzie Griffin, but the Crusaders have other weapons as well. Sophomores Ali Palma and Jovan Kingwood have gotten comfortable playing varsity minutes. Senior captains Kelly Andersen and Erin Sottosanti have provided leadership, experience and critical points. Katelyn Spielman, a freshman from Norwalk, and Nicole Fay, a sophomore, have also stepped in to make contributions. "Nicole goes in and does all the dirty work,'' Kriz said. "She goes in and bangs, and she's starting to show a shot. She's been a very pleasant surprise."
With so many players making contributions, the Crusaders are hard to guard. "One of our philosophies is everyone has to be a threat on the floor,'' Kriz said. "If your shot shows, we want you to take it. We've had kids that have had opportunities and they've capitalized on it."
Last season, Trinity reached the FCIAC championship game, in which it was defeated by St. Joseph. The Crusaders lost some key players from that team, but the returnees gained valuable experience about what they need to do to succeed. "It was a nice carryover from last year,'' Kriz said.
Trinity has already defeated St. Joseph in the rematch of last year's final. In its most recent game, Trinity thumped Brien McMahon, 74-34, behind Griffin (17 points) and Kingwood (13). The Crusaders should get a better evaluation of how its stacks up within the league in their next three games. After Warde on Thursday, they face Trumbull, also undefeated in the league, on Friday and a good New Canaan team next Tuesday.
"There's no predicting the league this year,'' Kriz said. "I don't take anybody for granted. We go one game at a time. We know what we want to be, and where we want to be. They're starting to play well together."
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