ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, March 20, 1996 TAG: 9603200058
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: FROM STAFF REPORTS
BUDDY FARRIS is named Group AAA girls' basketball coach of the year, and freshman Katrina Williams makes the second team.
Two Pulaski County High School rookies - 52-year-old Buddy Farris and 14-year-old Katrina Williams - received honors usually reserved for veterans Tuesday in the All-Group AAA girls' basketball team announced by The Associated Press.
Farris, the Cougars' first-year head coach, was named coach of the year after leading Pulaski County to its first Roanoke Valley District tournament title, an appearance in the state tournament and a 15-6 record.
Williams, a 5-8 freshman guard, was named to the second team after averaging 17 points and two assists per game.
``I'm surprised. Very surprised,'' said Farris, who had a 169-16 record in 12 years as the girls' basketball coach at Dublin Middle School before taking the Cougars' job this season.
``It's great. And in my first year. That kind of tops it off. But when you've got a good group of girls to work with, they make you look good. I had two good assistants [Michael Scott and Sarah Wagner] to help me out, too. You can't do anything like this by yourself. It takes a lot of people to help you out.''
With Williams making 45 3-pointers and 64 steals in the regular season, Pulaski County tied perennial RVD power Cave Spring for the regular-season title, beat the Knights in a playoff game and then defeated them again in the tournament final.
``From our first meeting with the girls, we were talking about how we wanted to beat Cave Spring,'' said Farris, who took the job when Rod Reedy left to become an assistant coach at Radford University. ``Pulaski had never won the RVD tournament, and we knew we were young and I was a new coach and we didn't have a lot of size, but we wanted to prove to people we could do it.''
And the Cougars did it with no seniors and a freshman - Williams - in the starting lineup.
``That's a great accomplishment [for Katrina],'' Farris said. ``I've been her only coach, from rec ball through middle school, AAU and high school. She's probably getting tired of me. I knew she had it in her.''
Katie Smrcka-Duffy was named player of the year. The North Carolina State signee averaged 30 points and led James Madison of Vienna to the state final.
Also making the first team were teammates Chalois Lias and Candice Edwards of Menchville, Tiffany Bell of Hayfield and Jackie Smith of Hylton.
Other second-teamers were Mandy Ronay of James Robinson, Katie Tracy of James River in Midlothian, Latonia Beale of Hayfield and freshman Shanna Price of George Washington-Danville.
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: RAY COX/Staff. Buddy Farris was named Group AAA girls'by CNBcoach of the year in his first season on the bench. color.