VALENCIA'S YOUTHFUL STANDOUT TARVER HAS PROVED CONSISTENT AMONG INEXPERIENCED VIKINGS.Byline: Lauren Lauren as a surname may refer to:
Kelley Kelley may refer to any of the following: People
Valencia (välān`thēä), autonomous region (1990 pop. 3,902,429) and former kingdom, E Spain, on the Mediterranean. It now comprises the provinces of Alicante, Castellón, and Valencia. High girls' basketball team, stood on the baseline The horizontal line to which the bottoms of lowercase characters (without descenders) are aligned. See typeface. baseline - released version with a bag of ice on her finger and a purple bandanna on her head that matched her practice jersey. Tarver, the Vikings' starting point Noun 1. starting point - earliest limiting point terminus a quo commencement, get-go, offset, outset, showtime, starting time, beginning, start, kickoff, first - the time at which something is supposed to begin; "they got an early start"; "she knew from the guard and leading scorer, isn't often caught standing around. ``She comes out maybe a minute each half,'' coach Jerry Mike said. ``She always has a soaked soak v. soaked, soak·ing, soaks v.tr. 1. a. To make thoroughly wet or saturated by or as if by placing in liquid. b. To immerse in liquid for a period of time. 2. uniform after the game.'' The Vikings (15-5, 2-3 Foothill League) are ranked fifth by the Daily News. Valencia is starting four sophomores and one senior, and it faces the toughest competition of the season in its own backyard - its league - which features No. 1 Hart and No. 3 Saugus. Tarver, momentarily mo·men·tar·i·ly adv. 1. For a moment or an instant. 2. Usage Problem In a moment; very soon. 3. Moment by moment; progressively. sidelined with a jammed finger The term jammed finger refers to finger joint pain and swelling from an impact injury. This injury tends to be very painful, and immediate treatment will usually help heal the joint faster. Most jammed fingers heal relatively quickly, if no fracture occurs. , is the leader of a raw but talented Valencia team that continues to smooth its edges as the season unfolds. But the process hasn't been fluid, and the momentum has not been steady for a team that continues to have high expectations for this season. Valencia showed how good it could be this year when it beat Saugus in a nonleague game. It also beat fellow league member Burbank in a nonleague game. But the Vikings fell to both of those teams, as well as Hart, in the first round of league play. ``I don't want to say it's disappointing,'' Mike said. ``But we lost to Burbank at the buzzer and then played great against Hart. If we had played that way at Burbank, we would have won.'' Although at times her team is inconsistent, Tarver rarely is. Tarver, who started as a freshman last year, is averaging 15.3 points per game but rather would make a great defensive stop than pour in 25 points a night. ``Offense is important, but defense can win you the game,'' said Tarver, who also averages 3.2 steals a game. ``That's what you need to do to beat Hart and Saugus, play good defense.'' Overall, Tarver thinks the letdowns are less frequent. Valencia is working hard to show the rest of the league headliners it can compete. Though the Vikings would like to have a better league record, they aren't concerned with what's already happened. Tarver and her teammates are looking ahead. ``We're going to come out these next five games and play as hard as we can,'' junior guard Tamaiya Smith said. ``We still have a shot in league, and we're not going to give up. We have nothing to lose.'' Mike finishes up the Vikings' practice by introducing a double-pick play, and Tarver is back in after throwing the ice aside. Valencia's practices are disciplined, and Tarver said that's the way the team likes to play in games. Tarver's mind is on the next day's opponent, Malborough of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. , and not about the final stretch of league contests. But they remain in the back of her mind. ``We feel very confident we can step up and beat Hart and Saugus going into the second round,'' she said. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: Valencia sophomore Kelley Tarver, who started as a freshman last season, is averaging more than 15 points and three steals a game for the Vikings. John Lazar/Staff Photographer |
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