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After scoring 13 points in the first half, Stamford High School tossed a blanket on Trinity Catholic's Mackenie Griffin in the second half of Wednesday's season-opening girls basketball game. With the game on the line, the Crusaders' junior center re-emerged to grab the biggest rebound and score the deciding points.
Griffin rebounded Erin Sottosanti's miss and coolly sank a short jump shot with 45 seconds left to give the Crusaders a 41-40 victory over the Black Knights in a Fairfield County Interscholastic Athletic Conference game. Trinity built an 11-point lead early in the second half before Stamford rallied to take its only lead on Kelsey Santagata's 3-pointer, 39-38, with 2:42 left.
Griffin, who finished with 19 points and 14 rebounds, grabbed the rebound and didn't rush. "It feels so great to win the first one in a city game,'' Mackenzie said. "We knew this was a huge game. We thought all along it would be an intense game. And we're glad that we came away with the win."
With Griffin leading the way, the Crusaders built a 25-17 halftime lead. They stretched the margin to 29-18 early in the fourth before Stamford rallied. Dani Jordan (14 points) and Santagata (13) combined for 18 points in the second half as the Black Knights closed the gap.
"We got off to a slow start and had some foul trouble,'' assistant coach Todd Parness said. "In the second half, we did a good job of fighting back. We just came up a little short at the end."
Ali Palma added six points and eight rebounds for the Crusaders. Jovan Kingswood and Erin Sottosanti scored six each. Kelsey Cognetta had six for Stamford.
Both teams figure to be contenders for FCIAC playoff spots in late February. The game featured the energy and passion associated with intracity rivals. "We survived, and that's what we want to do,'' Trinity coach Tom Kriz said. "I don't think it was a bad game for the first one."
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