1998-99
GIRL'S BASKETBALL RECAPS
March 4, 1999
|
||||
Evjen can be such a pest sometimes
By Steve Beaudry
Leader-Telegram staff
They would like to pluck the angel wings off Rachel Evjen's back and toss aside her halo like a Frisbee.
Sometimes they do. A growing number of opposing guards irritated by the 5-foot-4 Eau Claire North dynamo's get-under-your-skin-like-a-tattoo-needle defensive tactics turn around and want to swat her.
Trouble is, they'd swing and miss. They can't catch her.
"Oh, gawd, I used to think Rachel was such a little snot," Eau Claire Memorial point guard Crystal Walker said. "We've played against each other since fifth grade. She'd always -- always -- be in my face. You know, being grabby, trying to knock the ball away from me."
Little, sure. But a snot? Evjen? North's student council president and National Honor Society member? Smiley, dainty, courteous Rachel Evjen -- a snot?
"I try to not let her bother me," Chippewa Falls point guard Danielle Borneman said, emphasizing "try."
"Rachel Evjen can get on your nerves," Hudson point guard Melissa Anderson said. "She's quick and doesn't slow down. First quarter, fourth quarter ... doesn't matter. If you're the one she's (guarding), watch your back. And your front. She's everywhere."
OK, OK. But a snot?
"I mean, after I got to know her off the court last year, I found out she was a fun, nice, sweet girl," Walker said. "Actually, we're buds now. We'll talk on the phone and eat at Perkins and hang out and stuff."
But ...
"On the court," Walker said, "she's a totally different person."
Evjen's annoying defensive ploys have spread like spilled ink among her Huskies teammates. The team has shaved seven points off its average defensive yield of a season ago.
And, in this season's regional playoffs, North surrendered just 35 points apiece to Memorial and defending WIAA Division 1 state champion Hudson in a pair of victories.
With two more wins, North (18-4) will advance to the state tournament for the first time since 1981. The Huskies take on Menomonie (17-5) at 7 p.m. Friday at Hudson in a Marshfield Sectional semifinal.
"We've won with good defense, and Rachel sets the best example of how to play good defense," North point guard Nicki Robinson said. "Personally, she's helped me a lot.
"I think back to last year. I'd get yelled at in practice because I didn't play good defense. I started watching Rachel, and I learned so much.
"It's her hustle, but it's more than that. It's her positioning and her footwork. She stays out of foul trouble. Defense is something Rachel takes so seriously. She can't help but rub off on you."
Evjen's running exploits have bolstered her endurance. In cross country last fall, she became the first person to place first in the Big Rivers Conference meet for four straight years. She's a three-time WIAA Division 1 state meet runner-up.
Her devotion to running, however, almost cost Evjen her senior season of basketball.
"I had what they call a stress reaction in my left foot. It's, like, one step below a stress fracture," said Evjen, who sat out five games through December. "All I could do was ice it and rest it.
"It's not like other injuries, where I could exercise to make it better. It was frustrating."
Upon her return, Evjen's timing on offense was ... well, "rusty" would be a kind assessment.
"That first game back, against Hudson (on Jan. 5), was pretty embarrassing," she said.
With 4 minutes, 52 seconds left in the third quarter, Evjen attempted to throw a cross-court pass to 5-foot-11 forward Erika Reber. The ball rocketed over the leaping Reber and nearly beheaded a toddler who was waddling up the bleachers in the Hudson fan section.
"It missed that little boy's head by an inch," Evjen recalled, almost in a whisper. "I could've killed him."
Evjen came to life offensively in last Saturday's regional final. Her fourth-quarter 3-pointer was the Huskies' biggest basket in their come-from-behind 39-35 victory. She also had three of her game-high five steals in the final period, helping North hold Hudson without a field goal.
Up next will be Evjen's most formidable task to date. Against Menomonie, she will be responsible for containing -- thwarting seems too unrealistic -- Jackie Dummer, the Indians' top scorer and playmaker.
On Jan. 26, the artful and athletic Dummer had team highs of 13 points and four assists to help Menomonie hand North its first BRC loss of the season.
"I try to go into each game with the same focus," Evjen said. "Every game is a new challenge."
Beaudry can be reached evenings at 833-9212 or (800) 236-7077.