Hartford, Conn.- The Trinity College women’s basketball team finished the 2019-20 season with a 16-9 record overall, reaching the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) tournament as the #5-seed under head coach Emily Garner, in her fourth season with the Bantams. The team’s season ended after a quarterfinal loss to Middlebury in their third consecutive year in postseason play.
After suffering one loss to Eastern Connecticut State in November, the Bantams responded with a nine-game win streak that led them to finish the 2019 calendar year at 9-1. Before entering a slate of NESCAC games, the team went 0-3 to start off January, but began another successful run after defeating Colby. The victory led the Bantams to six-straight wins to lead into February, where the squad finished 16-8 in regular season, including a 74-71 double overtime win versus Hamilton. In the NESCAC quarterfinals, Trinity fell to Williams 65-56. Senior Peace Kabari (Manchester, N.H.) scored almost half of the Bantams points with 27, along with seven rebounds. Sophomore Elizabeth Althoff (Staten Island, N.Y.) matched Kabari with seven rebounds, as well.
The Bantams were impressive on offense this season, having five players with points in the triple-figures. Kabari led the team in scoring with 324, and also reached her 1000th career point in February versus Amherst. She totalled 1,050 points at the season’s completion, tenth in the record book for Trinity women’s basketball. Averaging 13 points per game, Kabari led the team; followed by first-year Bria Fuller at 12.4 per game. Senior Emily Peters (North Attleboro, Mass.) was perfect from the free-throw line, making all 22 shots this season. Classmate Devan Walsh (Danvers, Mass.) was close behind with 83.3% in free-throw shooting.
Kabari also earned a career high in rebounds per game at 7.2 (5th in NESCAC). The sophomore class demonstrated their rebounding strength with three different players grabbing at least 100 rebounds each. Althoff totaled 144 rebounds, Bailey Hyland (Broad Brook, Conn.) had 127, and Katie Kirsch (Pelham, N.H.) finished with 100. Althoff completed her season with a team-high of 49 blocks (2nd in NESCAC).
Three Bantams earned major accolades this season for their impressive play on the court. Kabari received the 2019-20 NESCAC Women’s Defensive Player of the Year, and All-NESCAC 2nd Team honors. First-year player Bria Fuller (Springdale, Md.) was honored as NESCAC Rookie of the Year. Peters was selected to the 2019-20 NESCAC All-Sportsmanship team.
The 2019-20 season was the final season for tri-captains Kabari, Peters and Walsh. The trio played a large role in bringing the Bantams to their third consecutive postseason appearance. In their four years, the seniors were a part of four squads that compiled a successful 63-35 record.
