Norwich

OK. Optometry joke: What was lens's excuse to the policeman? "I've been framed, officer."

Ugh.

Boooooo.

Terrible.

But since Holly Misto admitted one night earlier this week she wasn't aware of optometry humor, maybe she can use it on her next patient. Or in the next huddle.

This is Holly Misto. She looks into the eyes of her patients by day, an optometrist at a four-doctor practice in Westerly. She looks into the eyes of her players by night, the new coach of girls' basketball at New London High.

Here's how she's doing: The Whalers, 19-2 and in tonight's Eastern Connecticut Conference semifinals, can see as clearly now as they did a season ago, when all they did was make school history, earning the program's first state title. Misto assumed command from Kerrianne Dugan, whose single-season coaching sorcery might go unmatched around here forever. Dugan got married in the offseason and had to move away, creating a notable departure.

"I was very nervous," sophomore speedball Jada Lucas was saying Monday after the Whalers defeated Ledyard in the quarterfinals at NFA, alluding Dugan's successor. "I feared she wouldn't like how we played. Our first practice, she sat us down, told us how her old team was, how we're going to be. We've caught on. It took a while getting used to her style of play. But we got through a tough transition. Her whole game is about defense."

Asked what Misto has in common with Dugan, Lucas said, "We can relate to them."

This, too: They are tough cookies. Fair. Passionate. Ironic, though, that "Misto" means "mixed" in Italian. There is nothing mixed about her messages.

Misto spent nine years coaching at Westerly, her alma mater. She resigned suddenly last March 14, the night before the Bulldogs would play in the state quarterfinals. Misto's assistants, including Tucker Terranova who is by her side again here, resigned as well.

Misto told the Providence Journal her resignation came because she "reached a point where I could no longer effectively coach my team in the context of significant interference from several parents who misunderstand the meaning of team. And my assistants agreed. The interference was continuous throughout the season and escalated during playoff week."

Parents who don't understand the meaning of team.

Bet every high school coach in America not only can relate, but would like to give Misto a great, big hug.

Misto went 173-58 at Westerly, winning two Division II regular season titles, the 2010 Division II state title and advanced to the 2011 Division I championship game.

The hosannas:

"She completely turned that program around," 2008 Westerly grad Meredith Ward and current Fitch coach told the Journal last year, following a career at Holy Cross. "Westerly's a small-town school that went from Division II to Division I and has to compete against either Catholic schools or bigger schools, and we're still right in the mix. That right there says a lot about our players, but even more about the coaching. It's obviously something Holly loves and wants to do, not for the money or because she wants recognition, but because she loves the game and wants to teach the kids and make the Westerly girls basketball team a winning program. Overall, I don't think of Holly as a coach. I think of her as a mentor, as a role model and as a friend."

Danielle Ferraro, who played at Providence: "She was definitely tough. She was not going to baby anyone, but the thing about Coach Misto is that she helped you set goals both on and off the court."

Hannah Dobson, a two-time All-State player at Westerly: "Playing for Holly was one of the best experiences in my high school career and my basketball career in general. She is just one of the most inspirational and motivational coaches in my life."

Clearly, the Whalers got a good one here. Not that it's been rainbows and lollipops from the beginning.

"They didn't know who I was. Like, 'who's this lady coming in to coach us?'" Misto said Monday night. "But they were very receptive. It did take a while to earn their trust. But I respected them and they respected me. It wasn't easy, because everything was new."

It didn't take long for Misto to realize: 1: Nice bunch of kids; 2. Plenty of talent; 3. Speedy guards; 4. Skilled posts.

"Very coachable kids," Misto said. "Great personalities and they do well in school."

It's nowhere in Misto's disposition to make a spectacle of herself (yes, another optometry joke). She'd rather the focus go to the kids. Just know they're in good hands in the 06320.

This is the opinion of Day sports columnist Mike DiMauro.

Twitter: @BCgenius