GIRL MASTERS ART OF FREE THROW : 12-YEAR-OLD WINS STATEWIDE ELKS SHOOTING CONTEST.

Byline: Bryan Winchell Daily News Staff Writer

Watch any college or professional basketball game nowadays and you'll notice the art of free-throw shooting is getting lost among all the high-flying slam-dunks and no-look passes.

However, if 12-year-old Jaclyn Kolesar is any indication of the future of free-throw shooters, there is hope.

The Lancaster resident made 21 of 25 free throws to win the California State Elks Hoop Shoot in Fresno on March 3.

On Saturday, Jaclyn will be in Las Vegas to compete in the regional contest against one girl each from Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and Utah.

The winner will advance to the national finals in May in Springfield, Mass., home of the basketball Hall of Fame.

``I don't think too many pros could whip her in a contest,'' said Bill Lang, the Elks Lodge district Hoop Shoot director.

While free-throw shooting competitions can be loaded with pressure, the key to Jaclyn's success is that she remains undaunted by it.

``Maybe there's a little pressure,'' Jaclyn said. ``But I've had past experience with it, so I'm prepared for it.''

This won't be the first time Jaclyn will compete in Las Vegas. As a 9-year-old, she won in Las Vegas to advance to the nationals in Indianapolis.

And last year in Las Vegas, she tied one of her opponents with 21 of 25 free throws made, but then lost by one free throw in a five-shot playoff.

Jaclyn started shooting free throws after watching her older brother Justin shoot in the Elks competition. He set a precedent for her to follow, as he was the first shooter from the Lancaster lodge to advance to the district playoffs.

She now shoots 15 to 20 minutes every day with her dad, John, either in their back yard or at the Lancaster YMCA if it's too windy.

While she is aware of the pressure when she waits to shoot, when she is on the line she focuses her mind on remembering four things: centering her hand on the ball, making sure she uses her whole body to shoot, concentrating on the front of the rim and following through.

If she wins Saturday, Jaclyn will go to a part of the country she's never been to before. However, it's the basketball Hall of Fame in Springfield that has her especially excited.

The winners of each of the six age groups in the national contest will have their names put on a plaque at the Hall of Fame.

When she went to Indianapolis in 1993, she was treated to a Knicks-Pacers game and a tour of the Indianapolis 500 racetrack.

And best of all for the Kolesar family, all the travel and lodging expenses are covered by the Elks Lodge.

Unlike some of her opponents, Jaclyn isn't strictly a free-throw shooter. Jaclyn plays point guard on a team with players two to three years older than her, and she would like to earn a college scholarship for basketball.

``I like point guard because you can see everything on the court and run the game,'' Jaclyn said.

According to Lang, her point guard skills are nearly as good as her free-throw shooting.

``I went to a game of hers, and I was amazed,'' Lang said.

However, one of the nice things about the free-throw contest is that competitors don't have to be good basketball players to do well.

For Jaclyn, all the hoopla surrounding her trip to Las Vegas will be forgotten once she approaches the free-throw line.

``You don't know how you'll do,'' she said. ``You just go in with a positive attitude, and you just have to shoot how you regularly shoot.''

As for helping out the struggling pros and collegians, Jaclyn would rather wait a few more years.

``I don't know if I should be giving them advice,'' she said.

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Photo: Jaclyn Kolesar, 12, made 21 of 25 free throws to win the California State Elks Hoop Shoot on March 3.

Jeff Goldwater/Daily News