Skyhawks soaring in Coach Waller's first-year reign

Size and speed don't often go hand-in-hand in scholastic basketball, but those gifts have become the modus operandi for Lloyd C. Bird's girls varsity basketball squad. The combination

Page Dowdy/Chesterfield Observer Sarah Hill (#32) was the high-scorer against Manchester on Jan. 17. #22, Doherty and #13, Ebony are pacing the team.

 

has proved lethal as the Skyhawks raced to victory in 11 of their first 13 games, including a home victory against powerhouse Monacan, to move into the upper reaches of the competitive Dominion District.

While Bird teams have typically been lacking in height and guard-oriented in the past, this team features four players over the six-foot mark with several more coming in just under that plateau. The pleasant surprise for first-year coach Chevette Waller has been that the usual trade-off of size and speed hasn't materialized. "In pre-season, all the girls had to run the mile," said Waller, herself the school's all-time scorer as a player a decade ago. Over the mile course, guards were required to finish in seven minutes, and forwards and centers within a slightly more gracious 7:30.

"The post players ran faster than my guards," according to the coach. "All of [our players] are in shape. I don't think there are any teams that can outrun them."

That speed and stamina from a team which features just nine players, has led to an impressive 10 victories of more than 10 points each. Since pre-season, a focus on conditioning has featured everything from heavy doses of jump rope, suicides (running relays) and defensive slides to favoring full-court drills over half-court drills. An extra serving of suicides is thrown in for good measure each weekend for each turnover over eight during a game the previous week. Despite the small roster, the Skyhawks epitomize balance with multiple players near the 10-point mark, and assists and rebounds coming from all quarters.

Center Jalissa Taylor "is one of the hardest-working girls I've coached since I've been at Lloyd Bird High School," said Coach Waller. Considered to be one of the district's top division I prospects, the 6-2 junior totals about 10 points and 10 rebounds per contest.

Holly Baldwin and Sarah Hill have been dominant in the post for Lloyd Bird. Baldwin, 6-0 and a four-year starter, has averaged eight points and seven rebounds.

"She has all the components," the coach says of Baldwin. "If there's a mis-match, we can feed her the ball in the post. . . Against a better opponent, she can step out and knock down the three. She's always intense and gets the girls motivated."

Hill is a 6-2 junior who transferred from Nebraska last year. A player that always "gives 110 percent every game," noted Waller. Hill averages nine points and snags five boards per contest. Sophomore Bianca Vaughn and 6-4 junior Chynna Burwell provide depth for the forward and center positions, respectively. The Skyhawks backcourt, meanwhile, is in good hands under the leadership of point guard Ebony Patterson, who is pacing the team with 12 points a game.

"She basically runs the show for us," according to the coach. "If Ebony is having a good game, then the team is probably having a good game." Freshmen Barbara Sitton and Ruthanne Doherty also see significant time at guard. Sitton, at 5-2, is the team's smallest player only in height. Coach Waller recently learned she has played recreation league football in the past, a fact which doesn't surprise her. "She's a tough, tough girl-she takes hard screens and pics all the time." Doherty also plays some forward as well, averaging nine points and is one of the team's top rebounders.

Senior guard Danielle Lacy is brought in for her three-point proficiency particularly when the opposition resorts to a zone defense that can lead to more open looks.

Coach Waller brings some serious credentials to the head coaching position, having set the Bird career scoring mark with nearly 2,000 points during her playing tenure, 1990-94. Couple that with an impressive junior and senior campaign for Virginia Commonwealth University and seven seasons as Skyhawk assistant coach under long-time coach Chuck Tester. Waller, who was likely poised to take over the program at some point in the future, stepped up when Coach Tester moved to the helm of the varsity boys' team following the death of Coach Randy Cave this past fall. Waller's assistant coaches this year are Celeste Hoffman, a former collegiate player and special education teacher along with Waller at Bird; as well as Rebecca Doherty and stat-man Kelly McMillan.