DATE: Tuesday, October 14, 1997             TAG: 9710140445

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C6   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LEE TOLLIVER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH                    LENGTH:   39 lines

NEAVES: SUCCESS JUST A CHERRY SLURPEE AWAY

Before every volleyball match, Sarah Neaves sucks down a wild cherry Slurpee through a ``Brain Freeze'' plastic straw.

She then makes sure there has been no mixup of her socks and she is painstaking about making certain her court shoes have touched no other surface.

Superstition is her way.

So is winning.

Neaves has led the Tallwood girls volleyball team to its best start ever with her power and consistency - and a Slurpee on the side.

``It's worse in softball,'' said Neaves, a senior outside hitter, of her superstitious ways. ``We have to have that wild cherry, most of us anyway.''

But little pre-game rituals have little to do with Neaves' success. She's a classic example of hard work and determination paying off.

``Sarah deserves it,'' said Tallwood coach Angela Hubner. ``She's worked hard on her vertical (leaping ability) and she's a 5-foot-7 hitter who plays like she's 6-foot. She really pulls us through in big games, a fiery player.''

Neaves is leading the way for a Lions squad that has lost only one game and is ranked third in South Hampton Roads.

She's all over Tallwood's statistical leaders chart. In 35 games Neaves - a first team All-Beach District pick and second team All-Tidewater selection a year ago - has registered 121 kills, made 77 digs and has a 94 percent serving average.

The experience she gained with the Coastal Virginia Volleyball Club's U-18 team has helped her become capable of such numbers.

Neaves' team advanced to the Junior Olympic nationals in Denver and she was named to the all-tournament team at the Old Dominion Regionals. ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Tallwood volleyballer Sarah Neaves has registered 121 kills, 77 digs

and has a 94 percent serving average, including 29 aces.

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