THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, December 14, 1994 TAG: 9412140566
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
SOURCE: BY PATTI WALSH, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 57 lines
After starting most of First Colonial's basketball games as a freshman, Katie Walters was disappointed when she lost her spot to a transfer last season.
``I realized that if I wanted my position back, I'd have to go out there and work harder,'' she said.
Walters, a 5-8 junior guard, has done just that.
She scored 21 points, dished out five assists, made four steals and grabbed seven rebounds last Tuesday in a 72-61 victory over Tallwood.
Three nights later, she had a game-high 23 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals as the Patriots cruised past Green Run, 61-48.
The fast start has Walters ranked second among area scorers at 22 points per game and earned her The Virginian-Pilot and The Ledger-Star's female athlete ofthe week honor.
But the prestige of being among the area's top guns doesn't matter to Walters, who averaged only eight points a game as a sophomore.
``I'll score when I need to,'' she said. ``I don't like to hog the ball. I like to have a lot of assists and give my teammates a chance. I just think about winning.''
Though Walters doesn't pay much mind to her scoring average, it's hard for those around her not to notice.
``She's really racked 'em up,'' first-year coach Sandy Bartle said. ``She's not afraid to take the ball to the hoop. She works hard for the points she gets.
``But, she's also got a good eye for the court and sees the people around her.''
As a quick student of Bartle's team-oriented philosophy, Walters says that her team is capable of beating Beach powerhouse Kempsville and defending state champ Salem if they continue to push each other to the limit.
``We had a good team last year,'' she said. ``But we didn't want it as bad as we do now.''
Bartle added, ``We've set high standards and hopefully Katie will be one of those leaders to get us there.
``She had a really good week, but there's four other players I could be talking about.''
Like her coach, Walters attributes her success to those around her.
``I think coach Bartle has inspired me,'' she said. ``She's pushing to get get everything she can out of me.
And as for her team, she added, ``the only way we can go is up.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
by CNB