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It’s hard to predict what you’re going to get from a true freshman point guard. They have to learn the nuances of a new offense, adjust to a new coaching staff, play alongside new teammates, and adjust to much more talented competition and a faster game. It can be a lot, even for the most talented, but Kayleigh Truong looked comfortable right from the outset of her Gonzaga career.
The freshman guard from Houston opened her collegiate career with a sterling performance against Cal State Bakersfield, notching a season high 18 points on 4-6 shooting from the three-point line, and establishing her bona fides. Truong went on to score in double digits in three of the first four games of the season, earning a big role in Lisa Fortier’s rotation early and establishing that she could be trusted to help run the offense as a secondary ball handler and provide minutes on the wing.
Kayleigh has had to learn quickly and continue her development on the fly while the team was putting together one of the best seasons ever for the program. And when Katie Campbell was lost for the season on February 1, Kayleigh was ready to slide into the starting lineup and pick up some of the slack. Kayleigh went on to start the final eight games of the season for Gonzaga, taking on even more responsibility while dealing with the pressure of filling in for a trusted senior and the team’s second leading scorer.
With Campbell and Jessie Loera both graduating and vacating their places in the starting lineup, the deck is clear for Kayleigh to seize the reigns of the offense and take her game, and the program, to the next level. The expectations will be high for her, and her sister Kaylynne, to keep Gonzaga’s trajectory moving upward while also representing the next in a line of very talented point guards over the last decade. Based on what we saw over the last season, it’s safe to say she’ll be up to the task.