Trinity 69
Resurrection 48
It may have been sleeting outside on Saturday night, but inside the Sister Michelle Germanson Athletic Facility in River Forest it was raining 3-pointers.
Four Trinity basketball players combined for nine 3-pointers that dazzled the crowd during the Blazers’ 69-48 upending of Resurrection. Trinity (8-0, 1-0) had little trouble dispensing of its Girls Catholic Athletic Conference rival. The Bandits (5-2, 0-1) managed only one lead by getting the first bucket of the game. After that, Trinity was off to the races, leaving Resurrection at the starting gate. The home team led by as much as 28 points.
The much anticipated match-up between Trinity’s Monica Albano and Resurrection’s Deanna Ortiz never materialized. Albano scored 19 points to lead all players on the floor. At halftime, the junior had 10 points to Ortizs’ two. Trinity’s Shakyia Vassar shadowed Ortiz all night, holding her to six points. The usual dynamic duo under the boards, Erica Cross (knee) and Amanda Macchione (bloody nose, 10 rebounds), were forced out of the game with injuries. Albano filled the void, grabbing eight rebounds.
“I just crashed the boards on offense. Our team was little. I went in there and tried to help us out on rebounds,” said Albano after the win.
Trinity took the lead early in the game going up 4-2. Vassar hit the first of her two 3-pointers to get her teammates going. She finished with 11 points. Divinity Brown then answered with four treys of her own. The freshman finished with 16 points.
“Being a freshman, people doubt me. They say, ‘She doesn’t have experience.’ But hey, just because you’re a freshman doesn’t mean anything,” said Brown. “I’ve been playing basketball since I was 5 years old.”
Taricka Linzy also had a big night for the Blazers. The freshman finished with 10 points.
Trinity head coach Ed Stritzel said he’s hopeful his team’s success will continue.
“We’re different from last year. We’re young but we’re very quick,” he said. “We don’t want to peak in December. We want to peak in February. I told them before the game that win or lose tonight we have bigger goals than a one-game win.”
Earlier in the week, the Blazers had their closest game yet facing Proviso East on the road. Albano had 25 points in a game that went down to the wire, with Trinity coming out on top 60-56. The team’s next home game is Saturday (2:30 p.m.) against Glenbard West.