THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, March 5, 1995 TAG: 9503020194
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 14 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JEFF ZEIGLER, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: BUXTON LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines
THE CAPE HATTERAS High School girls basketball team has every right to give excuses about why the team might have a tough time winning. After all, the team is two hours from its nearest conference opponent and has fewer than 200 students to choose from.
But head coach Kathy Jarvis doesn't like excuses. Despite the long road trips and small talent pool, the Lady Hurricanes finished second place in the Tobacco Belt Conference and went 17-6 overall. The team also maintained a 3.5 grade point average despite late nights on the road.
The Lady Hurricanes have been led all year by four seniors that have been with Jarvis since seventh grade. Starting point guard Carinne Robinson is averaging over 20 points per game and scored over 1,000 points for her career. Other senior starters include Tara Dove, Heather Jeffreys and Erin Smock. Blair Jarvis, a sophomore center, is the tallest starter on the team at 5-8.
Jarvis said the Cape Hatteras offense is a deliberate half-court game. ``We set up a lot. We try to have a transition game but we don't have any speed,'' she said.
Even with the half-court offense, the Lady Hurricanes are not slowing the game down. The team is averaging about 55 points per game. They've also had a lot of close games that they have been able to pull out because of experience.
``With a good point guard (Robinson) we know how to stall at the end,'' Jarvis said. ``She's also good at the foul line. We know how to win if we have a lead. We play more of a finesse game.
``We may be at a disadvantage without height and no speed, but I've coached these girls five of the last six years and they know what I want to do,'' Jarvis added.
And when opponents have caught on to Robinson, the other starters have been able to step up their game. In a recent 54-48 win over Bear Grass, the 5-4 Smock poured in 23 points when Robinson was double-teamed.
Jarvis said with few people moving into the Buxton area, she already knows what to expect at tryout time.
``We haven't had anybody move in in three years,'' Jarvis quipped. ``I don't expect to see new faces. The junior high program which we started six years ago has helped a lot.''
Another expectation in playing for a Cape Hatteras sports team is the amount of travel. The Tobacco Belt Conference is widely spread throughout eastern North Carolina and includes a team as far away as Rocky Mount (North Edgecomb). The Lady Hurricanes' closest conference opponent is Columbia. Despite getting in from some games as late as 3 a.m., the players are expected to be on time for school the next day.
The other coaches in the Tobacco Belt Conference didn't seem to take the plight of Cape Hatteras' players much into consideration when they scheduled the league's conference tournament this past week. All of the tournament games were scheduled for one central location. There was a possibility that the team would have to travel to Roanoke High School (Robersonville) three times in one week, including two days in a row.
``We would have to do that even though we were the second seed in the tournament,'' Jarvis said. ``That really gives the advantage to Roanoke.''
Jarvis joked that because of such travel, her team and Pizza Hut have become well acquainted.
``When we are on the road on Tuesday nights we don't stop to eat on the way home. We call the nearest Pizza Hut at halftime of the boys game and tell them we're coming to pick up pizzas and then we eat them on the road,'' she said. ``It cuts off about an hour to an hour-and-a-half of travel time. When we get to the Whalebone rest stop, we sweep and clean the bus.'' by CNB