City of Basketball Love

By Matt Allibone (@bad2theallibone)
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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2024-25 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed thus far can be found here.)

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For Jack Crouse, the first word that comes to mind is “grateful.”

Grateful for the opportunity he’s been given … grateful that his work over the years has come to fruition … grateful for the impressive crop of players he’ll be coaching this season.

However, he still admitted the past month has been overwhelming at times.

A longtime assistant with Holy Ghost Prep, the 38-year-old Crouse was named the head coach at Nazareth Academy, an all-girls’ school and the sister school of Holy Ghost, at the end of October. He takes over for Mary Kate Magagna, a Nazareth grad who led her alma mater the past six seasons.

Crouse inherits a team that reached the second round of the PIAA Class 4A tournament in its first season in the Philadelphia Catholic League, making an improbable run to the league semis after stunning Neumann-Goretti in the quarterfinals.

“It’s been a whirlwind,” Crouse said. “I had a little bit of familiarity with them, but I didn’t meet the players until Halloween. But they’ve been so welcoming and supportive of me.

“Coach Magagna set the table nicely for me and I’m confident in the experience I have.”

Crouse played football and basketball at La Salle College High school and served as a practice player for the La Salle University women’s team. He spent 14 years as an assistant at Holy Ghost, mostly under legendary head coach Tony Chapman before Tom Heston took over last season. He’s also coached in the PSB Philly grassroots program.

His new squad went 15-12 last season and finished fifth in the PCL with a 7-4 conference mark after coming over from the Athletic Association of Catholic Academies. The Pandas accomplished that with virtually a lineup filled with juniors who all return this season.

The catalyst is senior combo guard Reese Power. A Drexel soccer commit, Power was a first-team all-PCL selection after averaging 16.5 points per game last season.

Nazareth’s top scorer since her sophomore year, Power enters her senior season with 997 points. She’ll get her first chance at 1,000 points at home against Agnes Irwin on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.

Power’s scoring is complemented by the defense and rebounding of fellow Drexel soccer commit Gracie Sullivan. A goalie on the pitch, Sullivan is a 5-foot-10 center who plays bigger than her height on the basketball court. She averaged 7.6 points per game last season but was named second team all-PCL because of her all-around game.

“Reese is a real gamer,” Crouse said. “She’s incredibly competitive and so fast and explosive. Gracie has an incredible understanding of defensive positioning. She’s so physical and strong and knows where to get the ball.”

Nazareth’s top 3-point shooter is Abby Rock, who finished second on the team in scoring at 8.7 points per game last season. The Pandas all-senior starting lineup is rounded out by ball-handling guard Natalie Dalfonso and athletic forward Rileigh Donohoe. Nazareth averaged 48 points per game with this group last season.

Junior Alyssa Browning, another star soccer player, is the team’s top guard off the bench. Senior forward Maddie Brazukas and junior guard Cassidy Hart are expected to round out the rotation.

Crouse is planning to take advantage of his deep rotation of multi-sport athletes by playing fast on both ends of the court. He said the Pandas offense will rely on movement with the entire supporting cast supplementing Power’s scoring.

Crouse credited returning assistants Mike Wixted and Tracy Harmon with helping him make a smooth transition in a short period of time. He’s added Lindsay McDonald, Julia Schumacher and Renee Evans to the staff.

“With the great athletes we have we’ll be aggressive offensively and defensively,” Crouse said. “I want to use our athleticism to get after people and push the ball a little.”

The PCL is always loaded, but Crouse knows his team will have expectations with so much returning talent. The Pandas reached the District 12 Class 4A title game but lost to Shayla Smith and Universal Audenried last season.

Crouse said the goal is to advance further than the second round of the state tournament and then “upset one of the big dogs” in the final rounds.

Regardless, he’s thrilled for the opportunity he’s been given after striving to lead his own program in recent years.

“Nazareth is a special place and community,” he said. “These girls have adapted to me and I trust them to play competitive basketball. They’ll carry us to where we want to go.”