Catching up with the Lady Monarch youth at the Norfolk summer league

Tiffany Minor, Brittany Campbell, Shakeva Richards

Caught the summer league at Maury High School yet? (If not, next game is 2:30 on Saturday.) We took a peek last weekend, and that allowed us to catch up with some of the younger Lady Monarchs: freshman Tiffany Minor, sophomore Brittany Campbell and sophomore Shakeva Richards. Here's some tidbits from our conversation with them:

Brittany: I'm healthy. I'm excited. I think it's going to be a good year for us. A lot of opportunity for everybody. I think everybody has a new attitude this year. I've lost some weight, so I can get up and down the floor better.

Brittany on what her new diet doesn't include:  Fried foods.

Brittany on last season: Last year was difficult. There was talk about me redshirting, and then I couldn't because I played in a few games. Right after that I got hurt. It was a rollercoaster ride last year. I've had two stress fractures before, but when I came off them, I could play. In high school I was a dependent player, so I would try to hurry up and come back and play.

Do you miss Indy (her hometown)? I miss my family and friends.

Like Norfolk? The weather is different than home. Wintertime is freezing cold at home. Summer time it doesn't get that hot. Now I'm burning up. I like the area. It's pretty and nice people.

Favorite Colt: Peyton. But he's not my favorite athlete. Dwyane Wade is my favorite athlete.

Shakeva: LeBron is my favorite player.

Tiffany: I used to like LeBron.

Shakeva on last year: It was OK. I wanted to play more. I wanted to win more. I played passively. I'm going to be more aggressive this year.

Shakeva on her 3-point shot: I had it, but I never took it. I'm going to start taking it this year.

Shakeva on fun: Shopping, shopping, shopping. Clothes, shoes, makeup. We'll shop anywhere. Any mall, any place.

On shoes: (Brittany) and me wear the same size (11 or 12), so we share.

Bet you didn't know about Shakeva: I used to be in drama. (That's not surprising, says Brittany.) I was in plays. A lot of plays. No Shakespeare. Mystery plays, scary stuff and comedies. I love being on stage and just doing improv.

I will sing. I don't know if people want to hear it.

Bet you didn't know about Brittany: I was on the swim team in middle school, elementary school. I used to do ballet. I played soccer. I played volleyball. I was a cheerleader.

Bet you didn't know about Tiffany: I'm not as quiet as I seem.

Shakeva on KB (new coach Karen Barefoot): She's brought a lot of energy. I felt like that's what we were lacking on the bench last year.

Majors:

Brittany: I recently changed to exercise science. I want to do rehabilitation and physical therapy.

Shakeva: I'm doing education. I want to be a middle school teacher and a coach. And maybe one day be a principal.

During the offseason .....

Shakeva: I want to work on my ballhandling. I want to make my shot consistent. And get stronger.

Brittany: I want to continue to get stronger. Rebounding, rebounding. You can never have enough rebounding. And finishing strong in the post. That's definitely what we need this year.

Tiffany: I need to get stronger and be more vocal and get more confident.

Why will this team do well?

Shakeva: We all have positive attitudes and everybody is going to work hard. We're going to be good. Come watch us play and support us.

Get in the game with MI Express

You got game? If so, check out MI Express.

Women interested in trying out should come to the Virginia Beach Field House, 2157 Landstown Road in Virginia Beach on Saturday, July 23 between 2:30 and 3 p.m. That's the time to register with tryouts set for 3 until 5 p.m.

In the past the team of former college players has played has played the Russian Junior National Traveling Squad, Old Dominion, Hampton, Norfolk State, William and Mary, George Mason, James Madison, Longwood, Delaware, American and Pitt, to name a few.

For more info, contact coach Johnny Horton at miexpresswb@hotmail.com

VCU's Q rockin' the Big Apple

The New York Liberty showed some love to former VCU star Quanitra Hollingsworth, who is contributing some solid reserve minutes for her new team. Big ups to Rams assistant coach Darren Guensch for spreading the link via Twitter.

Of particular interest was the following passage:

She finished high school at the age of 15 and was off to go play for the Virginia Commonwealth University Rams. As a young woman on a college campus, it was overwhelming for Hollingsworth, until she received some advice from one of her coaches. 

“My post coach told me ‘when you step out there, I want you to think of yourself as a woman amongst girls, no matter how old you are,’” Hollingsworth said. “With your presence, you should go out there and have that mentality each and every day. I carried that mentality through college.” 

Hmmm.... Wasn't new Old Dominion assistant Amaka Agugua coaching VCU post players back then? Hey Mox, was Q talking about you?

Hollingsworth, who was traded to New York after two seasons with the Minnesota Lynx, is averaging 13 minutes a game and shooting 55 percent from the field for the surging Liberty, winners of four of their last five games.

ODU's Allison ailing at U20 championships

An undisclosed injury - at least no one's disclosed it to us - appears to be hampering Old Dominion's Becca Allison at the U20 European Championships this week in Novi Sad, Serbia.

The Edinburgh Evening News mentioned Allison's injury during its brief report on Great Britain's "desperately disappointing" 39-38 loss to Slovakia in Thursday's tournament opener. Allison logged just 14 minutes in the contest and missed all five of her shots from the field. Allison has sat out her team's two games since - Friday's  71-64 victory over Latvia and Saturday's 81-31 loss to powerful Spain. 

Who's who at the VHSCA All-Star Game

What: VHSCA All-Star Game
When: 6 p.m. Monday, July 11
Where: Christopher Newport University
Complete rosters (Courtesy of the Daily Press)

EAST ROSTER

Taylor Huber, 5-8 G, Patrick Henry - Three-point shooting ace who averaged 21.6 ppg and leaves as her school's all-time leading scorer (1,680 points). The Colonial District player of the year and a first-team All-Central Region selection. College: Utah Valley

Ka'lia Johnson, 5-9 G, Thomas Dale - averaged 24.3 points, 11.4 rebounds and 8.7 assists. Recorded 13 double-doubles and seven triple-doubles. A first-team all-state pick and the Central Region player of the year. School's all-time leading scorer (2,075 points). College: Duke

Andrea Paphites, 5-9 G/F, Princess Anne - Averaged 6.3 ppg on a loaded Cavaliers team that captured the Group AAA state title for the second time in three years. College: USC Aiken

Ashle' Freeman, 5-6 G, Henrico - A first-team All-Capital District and second-team All-Central Region pick. College: Virginia Union.

Candace Brown, 5-8 G, Hampton - A first-team All-Peninsula District pick. College: Hampton. "A powerfully-built, athletic guard with the ability to slash to the basket, finish in traffic and absorb contact. An excellent defender who has the ability to shut down offensive players," Hampton University coach David Six said.

Taylor Jenkins, 5-11 G/F, Page County. A first-team All-Region B selection and a Group A honorable mention all-state pick (VHSCA).

Dionna Scott, 5-10 G/F, Freedom - School's all-time leader in points (1,752), assists (211) and steals (282); helped the Eagles win two VHSL state titles. College - Winston-Salem State

Jasmine Deloatch, 5-11 F/C, Sussex Central - Led the Tigers to their first-ever Group A Division 1 state title game, where she had a game-high 25 points and 14 rebounds in a loss to J.I. Burton.

Kiera Gaines, 5-10 G/F, West Point - A first team Group A all state pick and the state Division I player of the year (VHSCA). Averaged 18.7 ppg and led her team to the Group A state quarterfinals. College: Campbell

Jazmon Gwathmey, 6-2 F, Liberty - 6-2 G Liberty (Va): 2010-11 Virginia High School League Group  A Division 4 Player of the Year after leading Liberty to the state title; Averaged 20.3 ppg, 7 rpg, 3.3 apg, 3.5 spg and 1.7 bpg in the state tournament and scored 26 points and had eight rebounds in the state final; Liberty finished the season 22-5. College: James Madison

Jamara Malone, 5-11 C, Brunswick - A second-team Group AA all-state pick (AP) who averaged 18 points and 12 rebounds a game. Also placed fourth in the Group AA state triple jump event.

Quineshia Leonard, 6-3 F/C, Hampton. - Transferred from Portsmouth's Wilson High for her senior year and averaged 13.7 points for the Crabbers. A second-team All-Peninsula District pick. College: Norfolk State

WEST ROSTER

Sarah Williams, 5-4 G, Patrick Henry - Averaged 19.1 ppg and finished her career with a school-record 1,508 points. Made the Group AAA all-state second team (AP).

Erica Estes, 5-6 G, Turner Ashby. Averaged 12.6 points in helping Turner Ashby advance to the Group AA Division 4 state semifinals. Also an outstanding second baseman in softball. College: James Madison (not on basketball scholarship).

Brianna Mitchell, 5-7 G, Spotswood - A first-team All-Region III pick and second-team Group AA all-state (VHSCA). Also ran the anchor leg of the winning 4x100 relay team at the Group AA state meet.

Raiven Patterson, 5-7 G, Pulaski County - River Ridge District and Region IV Player of the Year who led Pulaski County in points, rebounds, steals and assists. College: Eastern Mennonite

Katie Joe Lester, 5-8 G, Twin Valley - Averaged 24.6 points and 10.4 rebounds  last season and scored 2,112 points in her career. Also won the 2010 Group A state high jump title, earned first-team all-region honors in volleyball and ranked No. 1 in her class academically. College: University of Virginia-Wise

Daquaa Scott, 5-8 F, Robert E. Lee - A second-team Group AA all-state selection (AP) who led Lee to the Division 3 state title game. Also a two-time state track and field champion in the discus and shot put. College: James Madison (track and field scholarship)

Rachel Artrip, 5-11 G/F, Honaker - The Black Diamond District Player of the Year and a first-team All-Region D selection. Also a first-team All-Region D pick in volleyball. College: Concord University

Zora Stephenson, 5-11 F, Oakton - Three-point shooting ace and an all-district and all-region performer who ended her career second in school history in points behind only ex-Duke star Jasmine Thomas. College: Elon

Kylene Culler, 5-10 F, Patrick County. Scored more than 1,400 points and led PC to three state tournament appearances. Is also an outstanding softball player and will attempt to play both at Ferrum.

TiChina Mitchell, 5-9 G/F, Forest Park - Latest in a line of Forest Park stars (Danni Jackson, Monica Wright) who set a school record with 46 points in a win over Hylton. College: College of Central Florida

Maryah Sydnor, 6-1 G/F, Radford - Averaged 26.1 points and 12 rebounds in powering Radford to the Group A Division 2 state title. Set a tournament record by scoring 100 points and draining 36 free throws in the three state playoff games. College: Appalachian State

Destiny Betts, 6-2 F/C, Halifax - The Western Valley District Co-MVP and a first-team All-Northwest Region pick who averaged 15.8 points and 8.9 rebounds last season. College: Virginia Union

Note: Although the players listed above are scheduled to appear, some all-stars have skipped the event for various reasons (injury, college summer school, etc.) in previous years.

VCU picks up 2012 verbal commitment

The trickle of 2012 commitments continues last weekend when Jenice Winter, a 5-10 forward from South Shore High in New York, pledged verbal allegiance to VCU.  The Rams no doubt like Winter because she's an athletic workaholic who has gotten significantly better every year. We like Winter because she loves journalism and dreams of being a sportswriter. Note to Jenice - Unfortunately, there are only about 12 sportswriting jobs left in America. So by all means follow your dreams, but you may want to consider a minor in something like healthcare systems or computer programming, just in case.

Now we're not going to pretend to be recruiting analysts and break down Winters' game - heck, we've never even seen her play. But one way we gauge the quality of a recruit is to look at who else wanted her. According to the New York Post, Winter also had offers from Seton Hall (sorry, Anne Donovan), Delaware (oops, Tina Martin), Wagner and Manhattan. Fairly decent company, we'd say. Any recruiting win over a Big East school has to qualify as a good catch.

Then again, high school resumes are nice but the most important factor in whether Winter will be an collegiate impact player will be how well she develops once she arrives in Richmond. VCU coach Beth Cunningham has an excellent track record in this regard, so while it appears as though the Rams made a good decision, we think Winter did, too.

UVa.'s Shine teachs, learns, grows in Vietnam

Don't know if Chelsea Shine ever complained about the food at the John Paul Jones dining facility, but if she did, we doubt she'll have any more beef with cafeteria chow.

Three weeks of taking meals in Vietnam will have that effect.

"Our motto was, 'Eat first, ask questions later,'" said Shine, one of 62 athletes to take part in the global initiative Coach for College. "I didn't mind the food at all, but the portions were pretty small. We had white rice with every meal, and they called me Miss Soy Sauce because I doused everything … to give it some flavor."

At least we know Shine won't report to workouts overweight. Besides, Shine told the Daily Press that struggling through meals - not to mention rugged living conditions, a mysterious intestinal ailment, the language barrier and - horrors! - shaky Internet connections - were small prices to pay for the rewarding and enlightening experience of exposing the Vietnemese children to the joy of sports and the power of education.

"I feel like I grew up a lot in my ability to relate to people and communicate with them in different ways," Shine said. "It was real humbling experience, to say the least, to see people living off of basically nothing and still being happy...It was an exhausting three weeks. But it was so rewarding and so worth it."

Bet Shine can't wait to tell her Cavaliers teammates all about it, perhaps during a team meal. Hey, Simone, pass the soy sauce.

Radford beefs up post with late addition

Had enough Radford news lately? We haven't, either. So here's the latest from the Highlander Hotline - the addition of 6-2 forward La-She' Walker from Greenbrier East High in West Virginia for the 2011-12 season.

Now we're not sure how Walker, or any incoming freshman for that matter, will fare at the Division I level. But we are sure of this much - this kid is a fast healer. Last July, Walker had ACL surgery. By December, she was back on the court. And in March, she was helping her team to West Virginia's Class AAA state tournament where she had 16 points and 9 rebounds in the state quarterfinals.

“Shay was cleared to play in December, and she wasn’t as good,” Greenbrier East coach Jim Justice said of Walker, who despite the injury was still an honorable mention all-state pick. “But she’s steadily gotten better every game. I promise you some college will be mighty glad to have her.”

The Highlanders will gladly take any help Walker can provide, particularly on the glass. Radford ranked eighth in the nine-team Big South in rebound margin, and the Highlanders' leading returning rebounder (Victoria Hamilton) averaged just 3.7 boards per game.

Walker completes a six-player incoming class for the Highlanders. Other Radford newcomers are junior college forward Tiana Cannon and soon-to-be freshmen Aisha Holmes, Jordynn Gaymon, Kiera McIvor and Ayana Avery. Radford also signed forward Dominique Powell in the early signing period, but Powell is not listed on the Highlanders' 2011-12 roster.

Radford adds familiar assistant

Katarina Williams

Lots of news with assistant coaches and directors of operations these days. The latest? Radford's Katarina Williams, the team's Director of Operations last year, has been promoted to assistant coach under Tajama Abraham Ngongba.

Freshly graduated Jennifer Conrad will be Radford's new Director of Operations. Conrad was team manager last season. Fun fact about Conrad: her late father, Revis Conrad, was head coach of the Kecoughtan High boys basketball team from 1983-99, where he mentored Ngongba's brothers.

UVa.'s Imovbioh stars for Nigerian U-19 team

Soon-to-be Virginia freshman Sarah Imovbioh's dual-threat talents helped Nigeria's U-19 team to a 3-1 record and a third-place finish at the Reze Basket International tournament last week in France. Imovbioh, a Parade All-American who averaged 29 points and 22 rebounds at St. Anne's-Belfield last season, posted three double-doubles in the four games and averaged 13.3 points and a team-high 9.8 rebounds per contest. She capped her efforts with a game-high 19-point, 10-rebound performance during a 67-57 win over Russia in the third-place game.

Nigeria was also led by guard Promise Amukamara, another Parade All-American and an Arizona State signee who averaged a team-high 18.3 points per game. By the way, Amukamara's brother, Prince, was a star defensive back at Nebraska who in April was selected in the first round of the NFL draft by the New York Giants. And Promise's other siblings are named Princess, Peace, Precious and Passionate.

Next up for Nigeria is the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship for Women July 21-31 in Puerto Montt and Puerto Varas, Chile. Nigeria will play out of Group C in the 16-team tournament and will face Australia, Chile and France in pool play.

The United States U19 team, which includes former Princess Anne High star and Duke-bound Elizabeth Williams, is slotted in Group B and will take on Japan, Russia and Argentina in preliminary games.