THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, October 10, 1996 TAG: 9610080167
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 18 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY VICKI L. FRIEDMAN, COMPASS SPORTS EDITOR
LENGTH: 69 lines
CHRISTINA TARR CAN tell you stories about being a teenage single mom and a high school dropout unable to find a job.
Not stories about herself, mind you. The Lake Taylor junior is a straight-A student and a two-sport athlete with no kids and no plans of having any real soon. But a couple of years ago, Tarr mingled with a crowd of girls who chose that path over a high school and college education. And back then, Tarr might have taken that road, too, if not for some pretty strong tugs.
Good parents.
A good friend.
And field hockey.
``When I came here my freshman year I was hanging around the wrong people. Sports really did help me a lot,'' says Tarr, also a left-fielder for the softball team. ``It kept me involved. Everybody tried to get me to skip or whatever, and I would say, `No, I've got sports.' I'm really glad I started playing sports in high school.''
Tarr says she skipped many of her middle school classes at Rosemont and Azalea, often going over to houses of friends whose parents weren't home. Once she was even expelled. But gradually Tarr changed directions as she watched many of her 18- and 19-year old pals wishing for another chance at the high school years they missed. Her parents encouraged her as did Titans softball and field hockey coach Beanie Schleicher.
``When she came to see me as a freshman, she was basically a mess,'' Schleicher says. Schleicher says Tarr dedicated herself to hockey and stopped subjecting herself to the kind of peer pressure that led to trouble.
``A lot of it came from within,'' the coach says. ``She realized she wanted to do something with her life and not become a statistic.''
Good buddy Stephanie Lynch helped, too. Lynch, the leading scorer last year on the field hockey team, introduced Tarr to the sport. Before coming to Lake Taylor, Tarr only played recreational softball and knew next to nil about field hockey. But that didn't deter Lynch.
``She kept calling me over the summertime - once a week she would call me - and she kept saying, `Come on. Come on out,' '' Tarr says imitating Lynch's fervor. ``I started coming out, and I just stayed with it. I didn't want to quit or anything.''
By the end of her freshman season, Tarr felt like a player. Life was going better in the classroom, too. As a freshman, she earned B's and C's. Last year she pulled those up to a 4.0, she says with a smile, and this fall her load includes AP Government and Chemistry.
Then there are the new friends in the form of teammates.
``Everybody on the team are friends and you always have somebody to talk to. It's really fun when you go out with them on the weekends and talk about the game.''
Lynch is at Radford University now, and Tarr has assumed many of her roles. The center midfielder is now the go-to player on the Titans, co-leading in scoring with Erin Harkins at six goals, and leading in assists with nine.
And now Tarr is the one who finds herself asking others to give field hockey and other high school sports a try.
``I've had a lot of friends who, once they start playing sports for high school, they straighten up,'' she says. ``You really can't do much because if you get caught doing this or doing that you're off (the team). You don't want to risk that.''
Still, Tarr stresses she's no saint.
``I still go to parties with my friends,'' she says with a laugh.
But mostly on the weekends. ILLUSTRATION: Photo by L. TODD SPENCER
Two-sport star Christina Tarr, a junior at Lake Taylor, lines up a
shot against Maury.
KEYWORDS: HIGH SCHOOL FIELD HOCKEY by CNB