New head coach of the Saint Anselm College men’s basketball team, Chris Santo ’15, has hired Trey Witter as an assistant coach on the Hawks’ staff ahead of the upcoming season.
Witter has spent the last four years on the sidelines at the NCAA Division III level. For the last three seasons, he served as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Trinity College in Hartford, Conn. He was mentored by Bantams head coach James Cosgrove ’87, a Saint Anselm College alumnus, former men’s basketball student-athlete, and Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee in 1993. Witter assisted Cosgrove and the program by coordinating offense, developing players, scouting, and recruiting.
With Witter on the bench, Trinity posted a combined 62-20 record across three seasons including a record-breaking 2023-24 campaign that saw the Bantams post a 30-2 overall record and earn a trip to the NCAA Division III Final Four.
“Coach Witter will bring a variety of skillsets to our program,” said Santo, entering his first year as head coach at his alma mater. “His experience and success in player development and recruiting will help us hit the ground running in our first season. Coach Witter has been around a high level of Division III basketball. He and Jamie Cosgrove (Saint Anselm Class of 87) built a winning culture at Trinity and I’m excited to see how he can make his mark here at Saint Anselm.”
During the 2023-24 season, Witter helped Trinity earn an impressive 9-1 record in the highly competitive New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) as well as a conference tournament title. Witter and the rest of Trinity’s coaching staff were named NESCAC Coaching Staff of the Year after a 20-0 start to the season, the best in program history. The Bantams reached as high as No. 3 in the Division III national rankings.
“I am thrilled and grateful for the opportunity to join Coach Santo’s staff at Saint Anselm,” Witter said. “I have tremendous belief in him and look forward to contributing to his vision for the program. I am humbled to join a program and an athletics department with such a great history of competitive excellence. I can’t wait to get to work with our student-athletes and be a part of representing Saint Anselm basketball as we pursue more championships.”
Under Witter’s tutelage, Trinity had players earn conference and national recognition including a National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) All-American, a NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, two All-NESCAC First Team selections, and two All-NESCAC Second Team selections.
Prior to his time at Trinity, Witter spent one season as an assistant men’s basketball coach at his alma mater, Division III Springfield College, in Springfield, Mass. During the 2020-21 campaign, Witter assisted the program with group workouts, academic monitoring, team conditioning, and had a high level of responsibility in recruiting. He successfully brought in eight recruits that joined the team the following academic year.
While coaching collegiately, Witter gained experience coaching at various camps and clinics. He has served as a Development Stations Coach at Yale, Dartmouth, and Brown Elite Camps since 2019 and has served as a Camp Director at the CT Swish Basketball Camp since 2011.
Witter graduated from Springfield College in 2020 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Movement and Sport Studies. He has PreK-12 Physical Education Certification and also earned his Master’s Degree in Sport and Exercise Psychology while at Springfield.
Witter was a four-year member of the men’s basketball team at Springfield. He served as a two-year captain, played in 104 career games, and led the Pride to a pair of New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) regular season titles in 2018 and 2020. He also helped the team reach the 2018 NCAA Division III Final Four.
A 2015 graduate of Farmington High School in Connecticut, Trey played on the boys’ basketball team and was coached by his father, Duane Witter. He went on to do a prep year at St. Thomas More School in Oakdale, Conn., graduating in 2016. Witter was a member of the St. Thomas More basketball program and was coached by Jere Quinn. He helped the team make it to the National Prep School Championship Game, where they were Runners-Up. He was also a recipient of the Tom Alquist Coaches Award.
