By Steve Svetovich
Holy Cross Lady Crusaders senior center Abbey Lentowski is trying to make the most of her senior season.
And she is more than making her mark on the talented Holy Cross girls’ basketball team.
Daughter of Andrew and Tricia Lentowski, the senior stalwart scored 30 points in the Lady Crusaders 76-44 win over Lakeland Friday, January 29. She scored 16 points in the second quarter alone as Holy Cross built a commanding 49-21 halftime lead.
It was the same game teammate Kaci Kranson, a junior, scored her 1,000th career point while contributing 26 points in the win.
The victory gave the No. 6 ranked Lady Crusaders a 4-1 record to start the season under veteran coach Barry Fitzgerald.
Abbey, 17, a four-year member of the Lady Crusaders basketball team, following the win over Lakeland, needed only 138 more points to reach 1,000 for her career.
“I am hoping to reach that,” she said.
The scholar-athlete has an impressive 3.9 grade point average at Holy Cross. She is a member of the Foreign Languages Club, History Club and the National Honor Society. She is a four-year member of the soccer team as a midfielder.
She talked about her team’s improving performance. “We started out our first game slow, but then we really came together and grew as a team. We are getting better each game as we continue to work together. Now we are working together as a team extremely well. I think we can continue working well as a team and go far in the playoffs.”
The talented senior center said her favorite academic subject is Spanish. Her favorite musical artist is Ed Sheerin who she previously saw in concert. “He was amazing. I can’t wait to get a chance to see him again.”
Abbey will study and play basketball at Immaculata University in West Chester next year. She will major in criminology or pre law with a goal of eventually going to law school and becoming an attorney like her dad.
“I find law to be interesting,” she said. “I’ve seen some of what my dad does and would like to follow in his footsteps.”
Abbey is averaging 18 points per game after the team’s first five games this season. She also had three double-doubles in the team’s first five games. She was a second team Lackawanna League all-star and made the Lynett Tournament all-tournament team last season. Abbey was also a second-team all-star for soccer.
Intelligent and hard working, Abbey credits coach Fitzgerald for much of her success. “He teaches us to hustle on every play. He tells us to go all out all the time. He teaches us to work together as a team.”
Abbey said her parents are always there for her. “My parents teach me to never give up even when things get real hard.”
She talked about what it takes to be a good center in high school basketball. “You need to have a lot of energy, be physical and want to get the ball.”
The senior standout said school and sports can be challenging during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It can be very nerve racking playing basketball during a pandemic. At any moment you can lose players or the season can end. We do take all the necessary precautions to make it work.
“And school being hybrid makes it difficult to learn at times. The students and teachers are trying their best.”
Nevertheless, despite a pandemic for the past 12 months, Abbey has thoroughly enjoyed her experience at Holy Cross as she prepares to graduate this year. “I have enjoyed it a lot. The teachers and coaches here really care about you. It has been an excellent preparation for college.
“I’m excited about going away to college next year. It is my chance to be independent and see what I can do.”
