ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, April 3, 1997 TAG: 9704030021
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BOB TEITLEBAUM THE ROANOKE TIMES
Sara Moore, a senior at Lord Botetourt, has been able to maintain her high grades while juggling three sports.
Lord Botetourt's Sara Moore gets her satisfaction in athletics by staying busy.
The Cavaliers' senior is going through her second spring that would test the endurance of most teen-agers. Moore is excelling in three sports - softball, track and field and AAU basketball. And she does well in the classroom, too.
Up at 6:30 a.m. every school day, Moore goes for a run. This isn't to stay in shape. It's her personal track practice.
``I have two courses - a two-miler and a three-miler. It just depends on what I'm doing,'' Moore said.
It's off to school from 9 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Afterward, Moore either practices softball, plays in a game or runs the 800- and 1,600-meters for the track team.
After all that and dinner, Moore still has to practice AAU basketball, which she plays on the weekends. Basketball is Moore's best sport. She was the 1996 Group AA player of the year and earned a scholarship to Campbell University, where she'll rejoin older sister Ashley, a former All-Timesland player.
Finally, before going to sleep, Moore finishes the homework she starts each day during spare periods at school. She is trying to maintain her 4.1 grade-point average, which should make her class salutatorian when she graduates this spring.
Moore manages her time so well that homework isn't a problem.
``I'm a guidance-aide and I get some of it done then,'' said Moore. ``I usually have 2-3 hours for homework. People ask me why I do this. I tell them it's fun and it's my last time.''
Cavaliers track coach Larry Carter said it's not a problem sharing Moore's talent with other coaches.
``If a child is willing to dedicate herself to running and follows a schedule, it was easy for me to let that happen,'' Carter said. ``I was excited when she came to me to do both sports. When you're approached by an athlete the quality of a Sara Moore, it creates a lot of horizons that can be done.''
Moore adopted her hectic schedule last year when she decided to play two varsity sports at one time. She became one of the Blue Ridge District's best defensive second basemen in softball. And in track, despite not going to formal practice nor running indoor track, she won the Region III titles and placed fifth in the state in both of her events.
``I was going to try and do this my sophomore year, but I broke my finger, so I just ran track,'' she said. ``In my freshman year, I just played softball.''
``I had seen Sara run in junior high, so I knew she could run,'' Carter said. ``Of course, they didn't have softball, so she was dedicated to track all the time.
``It was her idea. I had talked to her many times about doing it. She didn't know for a fact she could do both. I said, `Let's give it a try and see if it works out.' It certainly has.''
There might be concern about Moore's activities if her grades were to drop or her athletic performances declined. Judging by her high school career, nothing has slowed this human time machine who knows no boundaries.
``In my opinion, it's very demanding,'' Carter said. ``It takes the kind of person who is willing to dedicate themselves to the type of training it takes in all three sports, particularly three that are so different.''
``She is trying to put all she can into softball and practice track on her own [time],'' said Cavaliers softball coach Cheryl Campbell. ``Sara manages it perfectly. So when she needs to be out [of practice for a track meet], I let her hit first or work on other things. But she never asks for special attention.''
Basketball is still Moore's favorite. Unlike some seniors, she still is playing with the AAU program.
``In AAU, there's not as much pressure,'' Moore said. ``It's fun and I enjoy it. But Sarah Hicks is playing and that's a big reason I'm playing.''
Moore, said she wanted to play one more time with the Virginia Tech-bound Hicks before they split their careers.
``My parents like going to the games and I'm sure [the competition] is hard on them,'' Moore said. ``I'm not home very much. We don't spend that much time together, but they're always at my games and track meets.''
Moore admits her hitting still needs work. In track, there's still the ultimate goal of winning a state championship.
``It would surprise me if she wins one of those events,'' Carter said. ``She'll still be running against people who run cross country [in the fall], then indoor and a full outdoor season. Her times are a lot better than they were last year at this time.''
LENGTH: Medium: 95 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: DON PETERSEN THE ROANOKE TIMES. Lord Botetourt's Saraby CNBMoore has to look over her shoulder for only herself. No one can
keep up with her this spring as a softball player (left), a distance
runner on the track team (right) and as an AAU basketball player.