PREP VOLLEYBALL: SHE'S GOOD; STUDIOUS MAHAN KNOWN FOR HER WORK ETHIC.Byline: Heather Gripp Staff Writer Erica Mahan cried when she found out she made Thousand Oaks' varsity volleyball team as a sophomore. And she wasn't shedding tears of joy. ``She was saying, `I don't want to, I'm not good enough. All my friends are on JV, I won't fit in,' '' Lancers lanc·er n. 1. A cavalryman armed with a lance. 2. A member of a regiment originally armed with lances. 3. lancers (used with a sing. verb) a. A kind of quadrille. b. coach Lura Bleiberg said of Mahan's initial reaction. ``My coach brought me up because she had confidence in me and saw potential, but I was really intimidated in·tim·i·date tr.v. in·tim·i·dat·ed, in·tim·i·dat·ing, in·tim·i·dates 1. To make timid; fill with fear. 2. To coerce or inhibit by or as if by threats. ,'' Mahan said. ``It was such a different level then what I was used to.'' Mahan grew up in the South Bay watching her father, who loved to play indoor and beach volleyball For the ball used in this sport, see . Beach volleyball is an Olympic team sport played on sand. Two teams, positioned on either side of a net which divides a rectangular court, hit a volleyball, usually using the hands or arms. , but she did not start playing competitively until her freshman year. The modesty she continues to display made her feel out of place as a sophomore, but the work ethic work ethic n. A set of values based on the moral virtues of hard work and diligence. work ethic Noun a belief in the moral value of work that put her in that spot now makes her at home among the Marmonte League's best. After helping Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. to a third-place finish Noun 1. third-place finish - a finish in third place (as in a race) finish - designated event that concludes a contest (especially a race); "excitement grew as the finish neared"; "my horse was several lengths behind at the finish"; "the winner is the team with the in league, the senior middle blocker leads the Lancers (11-10) into the Division I-A playoffs today at Jurupa Valley. ``She has the greatest work ethic,'' Bleiberg said. ``She's a perfectionist per·fec·tion·ism n. 1. A propensity for being displeased with anything that is not perfect or does not meet extremely high standards. 2. . That's the reason she's so good. She doesn't want to stop until she gets it absolutely right. Whatever it is, she stays at it until she gets it down. She's an example of not settling for mediocrity me·di·oc·ri·ty n. pl. me·di·oc·ri·ties 1. The state or quality of being mediocre. 2. Mediocre ability, achievement, or performance. 3. One that displays mediocre qualities. . She brings up the expectation of the team.'' Mahan is pleased if others follow her lead and welcomes her teammates coming to her with problems but does not view herself as a leader. She feels that title should belong to those around her, to players such as outside hitter Jen Corral corral a small fenced-in enclosure with high, wooden fences, suitable for holding cattle or horses. corral system a management system in which range cattle are put into corrals and fed hay for a period when the environment is most - the only other sophomore on varsity with her two years ago - because they are the ones she looks up to in awe of their skills. As for Mahan's intensity, she does not see a point in practicing if it is not an attempt to improve. ``The way I practice, you should be putting out 100 percent every time,'' she said. ``If you don't, you'll never get better.'' In addition to being a solid blocker, the 6-foot Mahan is one of Thousand Oaks' best passers and has a .462 hitting average Noun 1. hitting average - (baseball) a measure of a batter's performance; the number of base hits divided by the number of official times at bat; "Ted Williams once had a batting average above . . She is playing the back row on a regular basis for the first time this year and said, ``It's all starting to click,'' as she starts to understand techniques to control the ball and improve her serving. Once the Lancers' season is finished, however, so is her career. Mahan, 17, does not plan on playing competitively again. The honor student with a variety of academic interests never played club volleyball or tried any other sports because the desire for perfection she has on the court is even greater when it comes to her studies. As soon as her junior season ended, she said she devoted most of her spare time the remainder of the school year to studying for the SAT and other tests for college. Even though offers were frequent to play at the club level, Mahan felt her teammates understood her decision. Once she got to know her teammates, she never felt out of place in a program - and sport - loaded with club players. ``I've always looked at it as it's just something I wanted to do for fun,'' Mahan said. ``I'm not competitive by nature, I was just out there to have fun. ``Once the season's over, I'm usually like, `OK, that's nice, but I'm ready I'm Ready is the double platinum second release from R&B singer Tevin Campbell. I'm Ready yielded the biggest R&B hit of his career the #1 R&B smash "Can We Talk", and produce 3 more successful hits in "I'm Ready", "Always In My Heart" and "Don't Say Goodbye Girl". for a break.' '' Mahan is not ready for a break just yet, though. If the Lancers overcome their inconsistent passing, she might not get one for a while. ``Everyone's really glad we got this far,'' Mahan said. ``We really wanted this. It's a nice way to round out the season. It's gone so fast. I don't want the season to end, I'm having so much fun.'' MAHAN FILE Name: Erica Mahan Team: Thousand Oaks volleyball Position: Middle blocker Year: Senior Age: 17 Notable: The team captain is a three-year varsity player who helped the Lancers to a third-place finish in the Marmonte League The Marmonte League is a high school sports league primarily made up of schools from Ventura County. The Marmonte Leauge is part of the CIF Southern Section. Click here to view the league schedule. and a berth in the playoffs, which start today. . . . Has a .462 hitting average. . . . Sophomore sister Nicole plays opposite for the Lancers JV team. CAPTION(S): Photo, box PHOTO Senior middle blocker Erica Mahanleads Thousand Oaks into its Southern Section Div. I-A playoff opener at Jurupa Valley today. Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer Box: Mahan File (see text) |
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