By Dan Truttschel
Sports Correspondent
With so many new players on the roster, there is no doubt progress is going to take a little time this year for the East Troy High School girls basketball team.
But that doesn’t mean it can’t happen right from the start – which was the case last week.
East Troy opened its 2013-14 season in style last Thursday night with a hard-fought 36-34 non-conference victory over visiting Delavan-Darien. The win improved the Trojans to 1-0 overall.
While there certainly were some struggles, East Troy coach Jeff Brown saw several positive things from the opener.
“They just kept fighting, fighting and fighting,” he said. “We were down basically the whole game. They hung in there and did what they could do to be successful.”
Brown said he certainly understands it was just one victory in November, but with so many new players expected to contribute, heading back to practice always is a little easier after a win.
“They come in (after a win) with a little confidence,” he said. “It’s a lot easier to correct things when you win. Kids are a little more accepting of coaching when you win than when you lose.”
The game was tight throughout. Delavan led 13-9 at halftime and held a 27-21 advantage heading into the last eight minutes.
That’s where East Troy took control, as it outscored the Comets 15-7 to pull out the opening-night win. A steal and layup by Emily Leising finally put the Trojans in front.
Katrina Santos led the way with 18 points, nine rebounds, three steals and four blocks. She also was eight for 13 from the free-throw line.
“We did a pretty good job of getting her the ball in the post in the second half,” Brown said. “She was making moves and getting fouled. She made the big free throws at the end of the game that got us ahead.”
Other statistical leaders included M.E. Dodge with nine points, 10 rebounds, three steals and four blocks, and Jessi Spaight with five points and four rebounds.
Brown knows the offense is a bit of a work in progress, but the Trojans’ traditional calling card, its defense, looked pretty solid against Delavan.
“Defensively, we’re pretty good right now for this early in the season,” he said. “Offensively, they had to decide that somebody had to shoot. They were all looking at each other to see who was going to shoot. Somebody had to put it in the basket.”
While the core of this year’s team is young and unproven, there are some girls, including Santos and Dodge, who have been in pressure-cooker moments like the state volleyball title match in the fall.
That experience will only help during basketball, Brown said.
“I think it definitely helps,” he said. “Katrina got fouled with 15 seconds left and the game tied, and she made the two free throws with no problem. The kid has been (in big moments). All those kind of situations help you out.”
East Troy is back in action Thursday night when it hosts Jefferson in the Rock Valley Conference opener at 7:15. The Eagles improved to 1-1 last week with a 60-54 victory over Columbus.
“We just want to try and get better every day,” Brown said. “We have a lot of young kids, and we’ll see where we are (at the end).”
