THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 14, 1996 TAG: 9603120099
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 19 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, COMPASS SPORTS EDITOR
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
TOMEKA LEIGH and Gayzette Richardson made basketball history this season.
It's not points or rebounds or assists that put the former Norfolk high school stars in the record books. Instead it was categories like ``Team's first win; team's first home win; team's first road win; team's first five-game win streak,'' where you'll find their contributions.
Those are the kinds of historical footnotes that come with the inception of a program. Leigh and Richardson were part of the first-ever women's sports team in the 76-year history of Newport News' Apprentice School. Under first-year coach Karen Barefoot, a former star herself at Christopher Newport University, the Lady Builders finished 12-2.
Surprising, for a brand new program? ``Yes,'' agrees Leigh. ``I'm surprised because of the two. I would have accepted one, because that was our first game.''
Leigh talks the talk of any Division I basketball player, only the Apprentice School - which competes against Division III and AIAW schools - is unlike any other college program. The school's purpose is to hone workers for Newport News Shipbuilding by giving students four years of tuition-free training in any of 18 areas of specialization. Apprentices work 40-hour weeks and attend classes and are compensated for their labor, including time spent in the classroom.
For a basketball player, that means no conference. No postseason tournament. After a work day that begins at 7 in the morning and ends at 3:30, it's over to the gym for a two-hour practice. Road games mean piling into a van - no fancy team bus here - followed by a matchup in front of a sparse crowd, a quick fast food meal and another van ride back. And don't forget to set the alarm for work the next morning.
Leigh is a 1990 graduate of Booker T. Washington, Richardson a '94 grad of Norview. Both women, first-team All-Eastern District their senior years, came to Apprentice because they wanted to play basketball again. Leigh had joined the Army, been a jayvee coach for the Bookers and taught basketball in England before enrolling at Apprentice. On court she is called ``Big Dog''; off-court she is a pipefitter.
``I'm not going to say I like it; I'm dealing with it,'' she says of life as an apprentice. ``But I'm definitely glad I came. My goal is to use the Apprentice School to open up doors for me within the shipyard. I want to get my degree in accounting and go into administration at the shipyard.''
Richardson didn't start playing basketball until her sophomore year in high school after the coach spotted the immense size of her hands.
``I didn't know anything,'' she admits. ``I didn't know you were supposed to change baskets after halftime.''
After high school, she spent a semester at Louisiana State, where she was an English major, and returned to Norfolk after becoming homesick. Apprentice appealed to her because ``I didn't want to have to pay for my college education,'' she says. Her specialty is as a shipfitter, which she compares to carpentry. ``We construct the hull of the ship,'' she explains. ``It's actually more brains than brawn. I looked up on the wall the other day and saw the Pythagorean Theorem.''
Just like any other college freshmen, Leigh and Richardson are decked out in their Builders wear. While the crowds aren't large in the Builderdome, any crowd, as long as it's loud, Leigh says, makes it worthwhile. Without a whole lot of campus fanfare, they have to be motivated by their love of the game.
``The fact that every time you step on the floor, you have the opportunity to set a record,'' responds Richardson when asked what drives her. ``Like Taffey Thomas,'' she says referring to the Lady Builders' leading scorer, a 1995 All-Metro player from Richmond. ``She steps on the floor and leads all scorers with 24 points. Right then and there that 24 points is a record.''
The first time they were introduced as the Lady Builders, they got chills - ``goosebumps and all,'' Leigh says. After opening the season with a loss to Bennett College, Richardson couldn't wait to play them again at home.
``I can't even describe the feeling,'' she says. ``I was up for most of the night; I couldn't sleep. I was up till 2 in the morning, pacing. I knew how bad everybody wanted it, including coach.''
It's not for everybody and they know it. Two recruits left early in the season, leaving the Lady Builders with only six players. They stuck to a 2-3 zone after that and avoided foul trouble, averaging only 10 fouls per game.
``We don't have the glory a CNU does,'' Richardson says. ``We come out here after a long week, after a long work day and I mean a serious work day. Apprentice athletes have to really love their sport.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photos
Tomeka Leigh is a 1990 graduate of Booker T. Washington High
School.
Gayzette Richardson is a 1994 graduate of Norview High School.
by CNB