Gracie Sanchez, a 5-foot-10 starting junior forward for the Trinity basektball team, has left the school to presumably transfer to Glenbrook North, according to head coach Ed Stritzel.
Stritzel said Sanchez left the school as of Dec. 17. He would not elaborate on why, only saying she would likely be enrolling at Glenbard North, her hometown school.
Without Sanchez in the lineup, as well as starters Mikayla Leyden (knee) and Divinity Brown (knee), the Blazers fell to GCAC Red rival Loyola 49-43 in their Suburban Holiday Showcase Tournament last week.
Megan Podkowa finished with a double-double of 13 points and 13 rebounds in that game, but the Blazers couldn’t hold off Loyola’s Katie Faught, who scored 19 points.
Trinity held Lake Zurich to just 26 points in a 51-26 victory to open the tournament. Podkowa had 18 points, seven rebounds and four steals in the win.
“It will take some time for the team to adjust to not only the Sanchez transfer, but two other starters out with injuries,” he said. Trinity lost Leyden to a season-ending knee injury on Nov. 26. Brown, a four-year starter, is expected to return from her knee injury in mid-January.
“We believe there are not too many teams in Illinois performing as well as we are with the loss of three starters,” added Stritzel. “That bodes well for the end of the season.”
The Blazers host Proviso East on Tuesday, Dec. 28 (6 p.m.) and Stevenson on Wednesday (6 p.m.).
