FORMER VALENCIA STAR SETS UP FOR HER COLLEGE CAREER ROBERTSON RISING VOLLEYBALL PLAYER AT UC IRVINE.Byline: ERIK BOAL Special to the Daily News Taryn Robertson has always been the athlete who wanted the ball in her hands at crunch time. Only Robertson wasn't setting up to take the game-winning shot in basketball or attempting to strike out a batter with bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning in·ning n. 1. a. Baseball One of nine divisions or periods of a regulation game, in which each team has a turn at bat as limited by three outs. b. innings (used with a sing. on the softball softball, variant of baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Invented (1888) in Chicago as an indoor game, it was at various times called indoor baseball, mush ball, playground ball, kitten ball, and, because it was also played by women, ladies' diamond. The former Valencia High girls' volleyball volleyball, outdoor or indoor ball and net game played on a level court. An upright net, 3 ft (or 1 m) high, the top of which stands 8 ft (2.43 m) from the ground for men, 7 ft 4 1/8 in (2. standout was getting ready to set up a teammate to bury a kill on game point, or possibly even take a swing herself with the match on the line. Since arriving at UC Irvine, Robertson's approach hasn't changed. Unfortunately for the 5-foot-11 setter setter: see sporting dog. setter Any of three breeds derived from a medieval hunting dog that would set (lie down) when it found birds so that it and the birds could be covered with a net. Setters have long hair on the ears, chest, legs, and tail. , the results have. After leading Valencia to four Foothill League titles and competing on Santa Monica Santa Monica (săn`tə mŏn`ĭkə), city (1990 pop. 86,905), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1886. Tourism and retailing are important, and the city has motion-picture, biotechnology, and software industries. Beach Club -- one of Southern California's most successful club volleyball teams -- for the past seven years, Robertson has endured some growing pains grow·ing pains pl.n. Pains in the limbs and joints of children or adolescents, frequently occurring at night and often attributed to rapid growth but arising from various unrelated causes. during the first 11 matches of her college career. ``I'm kind of a sore loser (jargon) loser - An unexpectedly bad situation, program, programmer, or person. Someone who habitually loses. (Even winners can lose occasionally). Someone who knows not and knows not that he knows not. , so I'm a little disappointed,'' said Robertson, who leads the Anteaters (3-8) into tonight's nonconference match at 7 p.m. at Loyola Marymount's Gersten Pavilion The Gersten Pavilion is a 4,156 seat multi-purpose arena in Los Angeles, California. It is the home of the Loyola Marymount University Lions. It was built in 1981. It is also the part-time practice home for the Los Angeles Lakers. . ``But I take it with a grain of salt. We've had a couple of pretty close matches and I don't think our record really shows our progress. ``We've been taking a lot of big strides. We're a pretty young team and we're still trying to find what works.'' Robertson's competitive nature helped her become one of the most elite players ever to compete in the Santa Clarita Valley The Santa Clarita Valley is the valley of the Santa Clara River in Southern California. It stretches through Los Angeles County and Ventura County. Its main population center is the city of Santa Clarita. The valley was part of the 48,612-acre (19,672. , leading Valencia to a 28-6 record and a berth in the Southern Section Div. I quarterfinals during her senior year. Despite UC Irvine's early struggles, Robertson's passion to excel hasn't wavered. ``For any freshman, it's very difficult to step in and set in Division I volleyball,'' said Anteaters coach Charlie Brande, whose team has won three of five after opening the season with six consecutive losses. ``But she's so competitive and she's such a fighter. I know how hungry she is (to succeed) and with someone like that running your offense, you're going to do well.'' Robertson is one of six freshmen on Brande's roster, three of whom regularly start. The former three-time Foothill League Player of the Year beat out junior Christa Conom, who recorded 1,280 assists last season, for the starting job. ``I knew I needed to work hard either way,'' said Robertson, who has 35 kills, 71 digs, 34 blocks and 363 assists in 42 games. ``But I understood I was fighting for a spot with Christa.'' The first match of Robertson's career was a baptism by fire The phrase baptism by fire or baptism of fire, known in English since 1822, is a translation of the French phrase baptême du feu and is a reference to a soldier's first experience under fire in battle. , as she and her teammates played host to Oregon at MacArthur Court, one of the toughest venues in the country for a road team to compete. ``It was a little overwhelming at first,'' said Robertson, who had 23 assists, three kills and six digs in a 30-20, 30-16, 30-16 loss. ``When we came out to warm up, there was loud music and the band was playing. I kind of knew what was coming, but I was still a little bit nervous. Even though we lost, I have fond memories of it.'' Aside from the Anteaters' two tournament victories during her last visit to Loyola Marymount, the highlight of Robertson's young career was a five-game home loss Aug. 31 to San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. , which, at the time was ranked 20th nationally, and is currently No. 26. ``That match was a blast. It wasn't fun the way it ended, but I had a lot of fun playing in that one,'' said Robertson, who recorded a career-high 52 assists. ``The atmosphere was great and it gave us some hope. It showed us what we're capable of.'' With Robertson running the offense at Valencia and SMBC SMBC Sumitomo-Mitsui Banking Corporation SMBC Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council (UK) SMBC South Main Baptist Church SMBC Single Mother by Choice SMBC Stowe Mountain Bike Club (Stowe, VT) , both teams were capable of competing with any opponent. ``She was phenomenal,'' said Nabil Mardini, coach of the Santa Monica Beach team and Pierce College's team. The beach team placed in the top-12 in the 18-under division the past two years at the Volleyball Festival in Reno. ``It's players like Taryn that make my job really easy.'' Robertson, a two-time All-Southern Section Div. I honoree hon·or·ee n. The recipient of an honor. Noun 1. honoree - a recipient of honors in recognition of noteworthy accomplishments recipient, receiver - a person who receives something , believes things will become easier at the college level with more repetition. ``A couple of plays she's very good and a couple of plays she's not as good as we would like her to be, but she's been getting better every time she's out there,'' said Brande, whose team suffered a four-game loss to Loyola Marymount on Sept. 8. ``We're very excited about her progress and her future. With her as our setter, we expect to make huge strides with our program.'' Robertson, who has spent countless hours going over films in an effort to fine-tune her own setting technique and become more comfortable with the team's offense, demonstrated some of those positive steps the last time she was at Gersten Pavilion. After leading the Anteaters to their first win Sept. 9 against Nevada, Robertson helped UC Irvine rally from a two-game deficit later in the day to beat Southern Methodist in five. ``If we decide to be competitive, we can hang with any team,'' she said after the SMU SMU Southern Methodist University SMU Solid (Waste) Management Unit SMU Saint Mary's University (Halifax, Nova Scotia; Philippines) SMU Singapore Management University SMU Saint Mary's University of Minnesota match, in which she tallied four kills and 47 assists. ``(After the first two games) I had to come out and prove myself all over again.'' Robertson knows that even though she has started every match as a true freshman True freshman is a term used in NCAA sports, indicating that an athlete is playing the sport in his first year of college, rather than redshirting for one or more years to protect future college eligibility. , she can't take anything for granted, which is why she commits herself daily to working on footwork, hand positioning and establishing a better rhythm with her teammates. ``I respect everything they have to tell me and it's getting easier now,'' she said. ``It's a different style here than in high school or club, but I have a better feel for each hitter and I'm becoming more comfortable with the offense.'' Said Brande: ``It's an ongoing mission to keep them focused on the process. But keeping them going hasn't been difficult because they're all so competitive and that is a huge plus. We're all ecstatic ec·stat·ic adj. 1. Marked by or expressing ecstasy. 2. Being in a state of ecstasy; joyful or enraptured. [French extatique, from Greek ekstatikos, from about all of our freshmen, especially Taryn.'' erik.boal(at)dailynews.com (818) 713-3607 CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color) After leading Valencia to four Foothill League titles and competing on Santa Monica Beach Club -- one of Southern California's most successful club volleyball teams -- for the past seven years, Taryn Robertson has endured some growing pains during the first 11 matches of her college career. |
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