THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 10, 1997 TAG: 9701100712
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY REA MCLEROY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 62 lines
Princess Anne senior Suawana Taylor has signed with Norfolk State.
The 6-foot senior has posted five triple-doubles this season and is averaging 11.5 points, 10 rebounds and 9.5 assists per game.
``Suawana is a 6-0 point guard and we're looking for bigger people as we go into Division I,'' Norfolk State coach James Sweat said.
``She's got a lot of skills. She's fundamentally sound, passes the ball well and has a good outside shot. She's going to fit in real well with our up-tempo offense and our aggressive defense.
``Her size is going to give other point guards some problems.''
Taylor is only one of the Princess Anne players who have been problematic to opponents this season. The Cavaliers bring an unlikely cast of starting players to the court each week. And win. Handily.
With senior Daminica Moody still day-to-day due to a stress fracture, the Cavaliers have regrouped with a starting lineup that includes freshman Sharese Grant, sophomore Okeshia Howard and Taylor.
Grant, who coach Darnell Dozier says taught herself the game, has been the hottest freshman in town. In her last two games she has scored 50 points to boost her average to 13 per game.
Grant is merely following in the footsteps of Howard, who averaged a team-high 15.1 her freshman season. This year, Howard has set school individual scoring records with 32-point, then 36-point, games.
The core has lead Princess Anne to the area's No. 2 ranking.
The Cavaliers (10-1) carry the highest scoring average in the area with 68.7 per game and set a school record of 95 points against Ocean Lakes last week.
GO, GIRL: Joetta Thorpe has found her stride.
The Oscar Smith sophomore averaged 8.5 points a game last year and has been the Tigers' leading scorer this season, but has really pinpointed her shooting of late.
Against Norview Wednesday, she scored 30 points on 12-of-17 shooting. Tuesday night, she went 10 for 17 against Deep Creek, scoring 27 points in just over three quarters of play.
``Joetta's really focused now,'' Oscar Smith coach Patty Walsh said. ``She was on fire (Wednesday). Hopefully, she'll stay like that.''
When Thorpe's not shooting, she's passing to people who are and averages four assists per game.
Thorpe, who has upped her scoring average to 19 points a game after posting career highs in the back-to-back games, has been Oscar Smith's top gun in two sports this year. In the fall, she led the Tigers' first-year field hockey team into the Eastern Region tournament with a team-high 10 goals.
OTHER HOT SOPHOMORES: Thorpe gained attention last year as a member of The Virginian-Pilot All-Freshman team. The team included Princess Anne's Howard, Salem's Michelle Garcia, Booker T. Washington's Tasha Basnight and Great Bridge's Denita Griffin.
Each of the players has continued her successful play this season.
Garcia is the second-leading scorer for the rejuvenated Sun Devils. She scored a season-high 22 points against St. John's during the Christmas break and averages 11.5.
Basnight has paced the Bookers to a No. 3 ranking in the area, averaging 15.6 points per game. She has scored in double figures in every game.
Griffin, now at Hickory, scored 29 points in the Hawks' first two games.