Long Island’s Santacroce family is keeping its basketball tradition alive. Gianna Santacroce was the last from Southold to head off to college—she finished her senior year at Ave Maria University in 2024. Now her younger sister Francesca has committed to the same program, starting the next academic year.
When Francesca was being scouted, the Ave Maria coaching staff discovered that Gianna had already walked through their doors. “When I was being recruited and they found out that my sister played there, they were like, ‘Oh, we want you here 100 percent. We want this legacy to continue,’ ” Francesca told The Post. “They even asked, ‘Are there any younger of you?’ ” added the senior star point guard on Greenport‑Southold’s combined team.
Southold’s Francesca Santacroce has chosen Ave Maria—just like her older sister, who finished her four‑year stint as a small forward last season. Athletic talent isn’t confined to Gianna; their older brother Kevin played quarterback for Pace University in 2016, and the eldest sister, Melina, was a forward at Misericordia University from 2019 to 2023.
Growing up, playing college sport felt almost inevitable. “It felt like I had to do it, but also like I wanted to do it,” Francesca reflected, noting she also plays soccer on the North Fork. She recalls watching all the games her siblings took part in, even before she was old enough to shoot hoops. “We still go out and shoot around on the driveway together, even though everyone is older. … My sisters and I just won an adult league too.”
Francesca’s journey to being noticed as a promising East End talent was no easy feat. She explained the challenges of being from a small school on the east side of the Long Island Expressway—Greenport has just over 300 students in grades 7‑12—where recruiters can easily lose sight of local talent. As the only senior on the joint team and one of just four Southold athletes committed that year, she had to work hard to stay visible. “It takes about an hour to get to any training facility for basketball,” she said. “It’s a lot of commitment, and a lot of people aren’t able to get a ride that they need or have the time in their day.”
Her parents, Kevin and Linda, did everything in their power to help her get noticed. “They made so many sacrifices,” she explained, adding that mom and dad drove her to and from far‑off training sessions and travel games—often at the cost of winter family vacations. “But when you get here and get this moment, it makes it all worth it.”
Gianna’s own high‑school path was less linear, moving between several competitive programs in upstate New York before landing on the Porters for her senior year. Francesca, however, played solidly on one varsity team for all four years. “She was thrown into a really rough situation. … It was hard for her, but she still made it out,” Francesca noted, echoing her sister’s focus on a finance degree as she aims to major in business. “I always looked up to her because she always took what she got, and she gave it her all. … I’m just so proud of her and how far she’s made it.”
The mental toughness Gianna brought to the court has rubbed off on Francesca. Despite slightly different styles of play, the sisters share an unyielding competitive drive. Francesca recently sparked the excitement over her own college commitment, calling the announcement “so thrilling.” After a 30‑point performance in the Porters’ 55‑36 opening win over Miller Place, she expressed confidence that the future will be even brighter. “I want to win a championship,” she declared, “I want to go out with a bang.”
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