MIDDLETOWN, Conn. — The state of Connecticut is no stranger to women’s basketball dynasties. Since Geno Auriemma arrived to Storrs in 1985, he and associate head coach Chris Dailey have transformed UConn, a once humble program located on several acres of farm land, into the winningest college basketball program of all time.
But earlier this month, on a sunny spring day in Middletown, a different women’s basketball dynasty, the Connecticut Classics 2, was in action. Also known as Big Red, the team was competing in a 3×3 basketball tournament at the Connecticut Masters’ Games — formerly known as the Connecticut Senior Games — the largest master’s amateur multi-sport Olympic-style event in the state.
In resounding fashion, Big Red won the tournament and added a gold medal to its impressive collection. Jody Rajcula, a core member of the Connecticut Classics 2, estimates that the team has won over 175 medals across its 14 years of existence, spanning annual state games not only in Connecticut but also in Massachusetts, Maine, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Nevada and Texas. The team has also won six consecutive National Senior Games tournaments.
“The Classics 2 are the holders of championships and that’s throughout the United States. So you can’t get any better than that,” said Brenda Westbury, a player-coach for Connecticut Senior Women’s Basketball, which organizes the annual state games. “I mean, what’s better than that? To have someone consecutive year after year come back, stay in good condition, and still be able to compete at the high level that they compete. And they’re just not winning games by two or three points, they’re blowing people out.”
The team started in 2012 and, though the roster has changed some over the years, a core of talent has remained. Through roster shifts and a hearty travel schedule, team captain Jean Trimboli holds down the role of chief team organizer.
Trimboli, who competed at Sacred Heart University in her college days, stumbled upon Connecticut Senior Women’s Basketball several years ago, looking to play some pick-up and revive her love for playing basketball after her children had grown up and completed their own collegiate athletic endeavors.
“Somebody told me up in Hartford, they’re playing on Wednesday nights, and I said, ‘Okay, I’ll come,’ and then afterwards they said, ‘Are you going to play with us?’ … I said, ‘I’m coming next Wednesday,’ and [they go], ‘No, we’re a team, national team.’ … so we kind of grew like that.”
Order ‘Rare Gems’ and save 30%
Howard Megdal, founder and editor of The IX Basketball and The IX Sports, wrote this deeply reported book. “Rare Gems” follows four connected generations of women’s basketball pioneers, from Elvera “Peps” Neuman to Cheryl Reeve and from Lindsay Whalen to Sylvia Fowles and Paige Bueckers.
If you enjoy Megdal’s coverage of women’s basketball every Wednesday at The IX Sports, you will love “Rare Gems: How Four Generations of Women Paved the Way for the WNBA.” Click the link below to order and enter MEGDAL30 at checkout to save 30%!
The team has evolved to include four women, Lynn Chiavaro, Jody Rajcula, Karen Smith and Karen Heinz — who played professional basketball in the Women’s Professional Basketball League (WBL) in the late 1970’s. Each had prolific amateur careers in their own right that led to the opportunity to play professionally.
Lynn was drafted by the New York Stars, followed by stints with the Philadelphia Fox and New Jersey Gems before competing with the New England Gulls in the league’s final season. Jody had stops in Chicago, New England, Nebraska and San Francisco. Following a college career that included an appearance in the 1978 AIAW Final Four with Montclair State, Karen Smith competed with the New York Stars during the 1979-80 season.
Fellow WBL alum Karen Heinz, who is based in Texas, was a later addition to Connecticut Classics 2. Heinz, a 2026 inductee into the Texas High School Basketball Hall of Fame for her decades-long coaching career, joined the team when they defeated her Texas-based team in nationals in Albuquerque in 2019.
“I [was] playing on a different team in Texas, and they’re always the team to beat, right? We’re at New Mexico semifinals, and we have them by one in overtime, with like 12 seconds to go. Nobody’s beaten them in probably 12 years, so they end up beating us by one because somebody didn’t help the helper,” Heinz said.
“So we’re walking out and they’re like, ‘Where’d you play [in the WBL]?’ in their dialect or whatever,” Heinz explained. “I said, ‘Houston.’ They go, ‘No, you didn’t play in Houston. Your name’s Karen, right?’ I went, ‘Yeah, I played with Houston.’ And they go, ‘No, Karen was big.’ I probably weighed 160 then … my legs were a lot bigger.” [laughs]
The Connecticut Classic 2 WBL alum eventually recalled Heinz from her two-year stint with the WBL’s Houston Angels. They swiftly recruited her to join Big Red, which she did.
“Can’t beat ’em, join ’em,” Heinz joked.
Though she lives in Texas, Heinz makes it work as a member of the Connecticut Classics 2, traveling several times a year to compete with a squad synonymous with gold medals.
“I don’t really get to play until I come up here,” Heinz told The IX Sports. “It’s very frustrating. I shoot in the driveway, you know, and there’s just no organized [competition] in Texas. These are all Connecticut women. They play against each other every weekend.”
Indeed, the Connecticut Classics 2 players compete year-round in pick-up games around the state to stay sharp for competition. Although the team competes in the 70+ age category, they often find themselves scrimmaging against teams in the 50+ age range, honing their skills against hoopers several years their junior.
“I didn’t start playing [in the masters games] until I was like 62,” Karen Smith told The IX Sports. ” … I’d go and shoot around, whatever, working out, but then my friends, my Jersey girls friends, I did a clinic, right? And then the one that was in the clinic was trying to get a team together. .. So we started, but I played with the [50+ team]. I was 62 and I played there because you can play down.”
As an older basketball player, Smith joked, “playing down” in age division is the equivalent of “playing up” as a youth player, something she had experience doing in high school. Now in their seventies, the Connecticut Classics 2 are grateful to still compete alongside one another — no matter the competition.
“Usually when you get older, it’s kind of hard to play a contact sport when you’re [getting] up there in age, but … we’re still, we’re in shape,” Rajcula said. “There’s not a lot of health issues, and we have the ability to travel and go places and play.”
Listen now to The IX Sports Podcast and Women’s Sports Daily
We are excited to announce the launch of TWO new podcasts for all the women’s sports fans out there looking for a daily dose of women’s sports news and analysis. Stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or anywhere you listen to podcasts, and make sure to subscribe!
With another Connecticut Masters Classic gold medal in the coffers, the Connecticut Classics 2 have their eyes set on upcoming state tournaments in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Maryland — as well as a team trip to Greece. As ever, team captain Jean Trimboli has Big Red organized for their upcoming slate of competitions.
“I organize it down to where when we’re done playing, I’ve got the beers in the car, all the snacks. I baked coffee cake for everybody,” Trimboli said with a laugh.
“It’s like a sisterhood,” Trimboli said of the team. “Usually, everybody’s all over the place, at least coming from different [states]. I got eight grandkids, this one has this, or whatever — but this is the common bond. We have families, we’ve had everything, but we’ve never lost that competitive desire.”
Since 2024, the Connecticut Classics 2 have been members of the Connecticut Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, and they’re not finished yet. Their eyes are on yet another gold medal at nationals next July in Tulsa. Like their dynastic counterparts in Storrs, Big Red continues to build a legacy that has far exceeded the boundaries of the country’s third smallest state.
“What’s helped in Connecticut is the love of basketball … I mean, it’s written that we’re the basketball capital of the world,” said Brenda Westbury. “We turn that focus towards UConn, but there are other leagues and there’s other teams and there are other people that make this work.”
