Wilton Girls Basketball Falls To Trinity Catholic

The Wilton Warriors girls' basketball team lost its second game of the season to the Trinity Catholic Lady Crusaders 48-35 Friday on the road.

Wilton head coach Jaclyn Woitkowski’s 0-2 squad was again without tri-captain and lone senior Margaret Smith due to a shoulder injury suffered during the preseason.

It should only be temporary even though there was a chance for her return Friday. The team is hoping she will be cleared to return to the starting lineup for the Warriors' next game on Wednesday (7 p.m.) against Bridgeport Central, or for Friday’s matchup at St. Joseph.

The Warriors had the same issues Friday as they had Wednesday during their 45-41 season-opening loss at Greenwich - a lack of offense. Still, that offense was present at times, which Woitkowski liked.

“We had spurts,” she said of her players’ ability to score six to eight points in two minutes,  “but we just weren’t consistent.”

Wilton junior Kelly Brosko’s 3-pointer gave the Warriors a quick 3-0 lead less than a minute into the first quarter before Trinity Catholic  overcame a 6-5 deficit  to go ahead 11-5 heading into the second.

Junior tri-captain and forward Maddy Fulton opened the second quarter with another 3-pointer,  cutting the deficit in half before Lady Crusader senior captain Erin Sottosanti extended the lead to 13-8.

Baskets  by Hannah Montgomery and Casey Pearsall pulled Wilton within 13-12, but the Warriors never led.

The Lady Crusaders stretched their lead to 26-16 at the break, then continued their dominance in another defensive and foul-ridden third quarter to take a 12-point cushion into the final period.

The Warriors made a bit of a run in the fourth, closing within 38-29, forcing  Trinity Catholic coach Tom Kriz to call a timeout with five minutes to go.

The brief break slowed the Warriors' momentum, and the Crusaders pulled away for their second consecutive victory heading into Wednesday’s 6 p.m. home game against Lauralton Hall.

"Wilton played a very competitive nature of basketball," Kriz said. “They've got some nice little players.”

Kriz also took into account the emotional fatigue his players felt after Wednesday’s 41-40 nail-biting win over cross-town rival Stamford High.

“There was an emotional drain after the Stamford High game,”  he said.

Junior Kara Mackenzie Griffin led Trinity Catholic with 13 points, while Pearsall paced  all scorers with 15, her second double-digit game of the young season. Fulton finished with 13.