On the Heels of First State Title, 2024 Team Off and Running
The Trinity Presbyterian Wildcats took a major step last year, capturing the school’s first girls basketball state championship with an exciting, come-from-behind 52-48 win over Clements in the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s Class 3A state title game. For head coach Blake Smith and his wife and assistant coach, Megan, the championship was an opportunity to reflect on the last few years. The Smiths began to build the core Trinity Presbyterian team around their oldest daughter, Emma Kate, when she was a seventh-grader.
“There is no better feeling to start building a team with your family, and add other great players to the team, which is what we were able to fortunately do,” said Blake Smith. “Don’t get me wrong, there were so many who bought in along the way, but Emma Kate was the piece that we started off with. She was what we knew we could begin this process with.”
Now, with their first state championship trophy proudly displayed in the school’s lobby, Smith and Trinity Presbyterian have embarked on the followup to last year’s incredible run. So far, so good, but some key players who were a part of last year’s state title team have moved on, starting with Emma Kate.
“She had been a fixture with this team for a long time, and coming in here was definitely very different without having her around,” Smith said. “Her presence is definitely missed.”
Emma Kate is continuing her basketball career at the next level, as she is now at the University of Alabama-Huntsville. Also gone is forward Jayden Mitchell, who suffered a season-ending injury midway through last season.
But the good news is that everyone else is back, and coach Smith said he knows the team must capitalize on the experience.
“We have a ton of experience with four of the starters from last year back, and the thing about that is they will also be back next year, so we will have the core group of this team for three straight years, including the rest of this season,” said Smith.
The returning group of starters includes junior guard and Tennessee Tech commit Francie Morris and shooting guard Mya Moskowitz, along with Maddie Smith, who has committed to UAH – where she’ll join big sister Emma Kate – and Lilly Smith.
Coach Smith and Trinity Presbyterian also received some good news with the addition of three new players, and kind of like the Smith sisters, this was a “package deal.”
“We had a set of triplets move in this offseason, and they joined the team early enough to play with us this summer,” said Smith. “They are Ella, Lizzy, and Emory Causey. I’ve known the family for a while. They are each competitors, and they’re still learning how they best fit in with the rest of our team.”
Smith said his Trinity Presbyterian team’s chemistry has made the transition of their new teammates fairly easy: “The camaraderie of this team is off the chart, so welcoming in new teammates isn’t a problem at all.”
With the Causey triplets all sophomores, they’ll have a chance to not only break in, but make a name for themselves for the rest of this season, and over the next two years, too.
Smith also said he received some unwanted news in the offseason, a bit of a scare that threatened the return of two of those key starters.
“[Last] summer, Mya had to have surgery for a hip injury, and then Francie Morris suffered a shoulder injury playing volleyball,” he said, adding that the thought of going through this season without half of his returning starters would have been “a punch in the gut.”
The injuries caused Mya to miss the first five games of this season, while Francie sat out the first 10 contests. Smith said he feels fortunate to have both back, and he thinks the team is just now starting to hit its stride.
He added that he loaded the early-season schedule with tough competition, not anticipating that he’d have a limited roster. The result was somewhat predictable: An 0-3 start against larger schools Central, Hillcrest, and Guntersville.
Now, though, with Morris and Moskowitz back, things are starting to heat up for the Wildcats. Through January 21, Trinity had won 15 of its last 17 games, giving the Wildcats a 15-5 overall record.
Maddie Smith leads the team with a 16 PPG average, along with 6 assists, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals per contest. Francie Morris and Mya Moskowitz are each averaging 15 points per game, with Mya pulling down 8 rebounds per game and Francie adding 5 assists, 7 rebounds, and 4 steals per outing.
Coach Smith knows he has a special group, and while last year’s state title was the first for the Wildcats, he has a team that could give Trinity Presbyterian a few more opportunities for championships.
“We are fully aware that we need to take advantage of this,” he said.
After all, nothing lasts forever.
