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 Tara Van Derveer |
Katie Robertson (Bend, OR)
Hi Tara! I would love to be a college womens basketball coach. I waswondering how you got started in the career, and if you ever had doubtsthroughout the process.
Coach VanDerveer: I fell into it backwards. I was coaching my sister's high school team, andI've thoroughly enjoyed it the whole time I've been doing it.
Eric Seavers (Foster City, CA)
Do you have any pre-game superstitions?
Coach VanDerveer: None.
Lonnie Marston (San Juan Capistrano, CA)
Does the success of the either the men's or women's team help the other asfar as recruiting? The men have recently become a national name and musthelp define Stanford as a "basketball school" (beyond the selling point ofthe academics).
Coach VanDerveer: I would agree it does, but not just men's basketball; our football teamdoing so well, and other sports, other men's and women's sports, beingnationally ranked really helps.
Juanita Martinez (San Bruno, CA)
Do your basketball camps provide a good opportunity to see some of the goodyoung players who will be looking at colleges in the near future? Have youever had anyone on the team who went through your camp?
Coach VanDerveer: Yes, and yes. Our camps give us a chance to watch them and get to knowplayers, and we've had several players on our current team -- Jamie Carey,Enjoli Izidor, Cori Enghusen, Carolyn Moos -- and on our next year's team-- Susan King, Katie Denny, Chelsea Trotter -- so really a lot of kids docome to our camp. Kristin Folkl came to our camp, Regan Freuen. The listgoes on.
Peter Randolph (Los Gatos, CA)
I have heard that some programs play against men on occasion inpractice. Do you bring in guys for the team to practice against?
Coach VanDerveer: We do have two male managers that we do scrimmage against, and early in thefall we scrimmage against a guys team -- students. It does help us. Wedon't do it too much later in the season because we don't want people toget hurt.
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