Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, January 12, 1995 TAG: 9501120048
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DUBLIN LENGTH: Medium
``Take it easy on this guy,'' Reedy said to Carrie McConnell. ``Be nice to him.''
It went without saying. McConnell is one who speaks so softly, so gently, that you might be forced to conclude that she's the shy, retiring sort - unless you've seen her with a basketball in her hand. Withdrawn and subdued she is not when she takes the court. Basketball seems to define the 5-foot-6 senior almost as much as her 3.9 (on a 4.0 scale) grade-point average.
McConnell figures to be college material both in the classroom and on the court. She will be the third member of a powerful team to agree to play in college. The other two are Kim Cruise (Radford University) and Jodie Hallett (Elon). McConnell got an offer last week to play for North Carolina-Wilmington, but she wasn't as hasty in coming to a decision as the other two.
``I think I'm going to wait until the end of the season before I decide anything,'' she said. ``I'm hoping that we can go to the state tournament and play for a while, and that'll give some more coaches a chance to see me play. If that doesn't happen, I'll just go where they'll have me. Right now, I don't want it to be a distraction.''
UNC-W has made the strongest Division I pitch, although Elon and several other Division II programs have shown at least equal interest. Should McConnell decide in favor of UNC-W, she would be reunited with former AAU teammate Carrie Chaffin of undefeated state Group A champion Floyd County. McConnell said Chaffin's being in the UNC-W fold might have an influence on the decision.
``Knowing that there will be a good friend there who's a great player who knows how to win will give me some confidence about my decision,'' she said.
McConnell's confidence has never been lacking, even though there have been some all-out assaults on it. The most jarring of these was a series of knee injuries in her freshman season.
The first of these came in January. After the initial diagnosis was negative on serious damage, she sat out a few games and then was back in the action. The knee soon gave out again, with immense pain. This time, exploratory surgery revealed a complete tear of the medial collateral ligament and cartilage damage on both sides of the knee.
The cartilage was repaired by Dr. Robert Stevenson of Dublin. Later, surgeon Frank McCue of Charlottesville reconstructed the knee by grafting a ligament from elsewhere on McConnell's body to the damaged one.
She missed the rest of the season, and it was suggested more than once that she wouldn't be able to play at all the next year.
``I made it my goal to come back,'' she said. ``I couldn't let my teammates down.''
Come back she did, even if she was only about 70 percent effective.
``I've had some dedicated players since I've been here, but she's as dedicated if not more so than anybody I've had,'' Reedy said. ``It was just by sheer willpower that she came back as a sophomore.''
At first, McConnell battled her natural inclination to fear reinjuring the knee.
``When it didn't give out again, my confidence increased,'' she said. ``Now, I think it's stronger than ever.''
Even then, it has been a long path back. McConnell said that the knee felt good last year, but she was frequently frustrated because of restrictions of movement that slowed her down.
Now, she's playing as well as she ever has, averaging a career-high 12.7 points per game while dishing out four assists per game.
Experience has been an asset. So have Hallett and Cruise, both of whom are having big years. McConnell can attest that there is no substitute for either experience or good teammates.
``I started playing when I was in the second grade,'' she said. ``I liked it, and I kept playing. It also helps to be on good teams when you win a lot.''
by CNB