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48 °F Forecast | Road Cams Thursday, February 26, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend February 6, 2004 A warrior inside Michelle Westermann focuses on defense and rebounding for the Black Tornado girls By TIM PYLE Mail Tribune Scoring is glamorous. Rebounding and defense? Well, there’s a reason it’s referred to as "dirty work." For Michelle Westermann, however, there’s boundless beauty in doing what goes unappreciated by many. Advertisement "Me and defense and rebounding go together," says Westermann, the North Medford girls basketball team’s junior post. "I love playing defense and love getting rebounds to start the fastbreak that ends up as a layup for my team at the other end. That’s my glory." It’s helping the Black Tornado attain collective fame. North (15-4 overall) is tied for first place in the Southern Oregon Conference with Crater with five games left in the regular season. Both teams are 8-1 in the SOC heading into games at 7 tonight, when the Tornado plays host to Klamath Union (0-9 SOC) and the Comets entertain Grants Pass (5-4 SOC). North has claimed a share of the conference crown just once in program history — 1999, when it tied Ashland but entered the Class 4A state playoffs as the league’s second seed. The Tornado has never won the SOC outright. That’s an 18-year drought since North and South Medford split in the 1986-87 school year. Led by Westermann and three other junior starters, the Tornado knows it could stop that streak this winter. "Last year, it was a lot about getting respect back that we lost," says Westermann, who started as a sophomore on a team that went 15-10 and 10-4 in the SOC last winter, one season removed from a 5-19, 2-12 debacle. "This year, our goal is to win the conference and go to the state tournament." Westermann’s doing her part to get North there by averaging 10.2 points per game and providing her preferred labor. The 6-foot-1 banger leads the team in steals and rebounds, averaging 3.2 swipes per outing and boasting 11 efforts of eight boards or more in the Tornado’s 19 games. Westermann also owns North’s biggest blocked shot, a last-second swat of Whitney Black’s potentially game-tying jumper that cemented the Tornado’s 44-42 home victory over Crater on Jan. 13. "She’s a warrior," says Tim Karrick, North’s second-year head coach. "She’s tough, and she’s athletic too." Last year, Westermann played alongside Kerstin Mellbye, a 6-2 post who is now competing at Oregon State. Karrick put Westermann on the opposition’s primary paint threat, both to keep Mellbye out of foul trouble and to give Westermann the experience. "As a sophomore, we thought she did a really, really good job defensively," Karrick says. "So I think that with her defense this year, her confidence is very, very good." Westermann was named honorable mention all-SOC for her performance in 2003. But she says her focus on defense and rebounding began much earlier. "My freshman year, I guarded Kerstin Mellbye like every day in practice," says Westermann, who admits an affinity for physical play. "I think of it as an honor and a privilege to guard the best post. Defense is my part of the game. "Rebounding is just positioning, and really it comes down to fundamentals, which I’ve been working on ever since I was in third grade. Same with defense." Sixth grade is when Westermann began playing with many of her current teammates — such as fellow junior starters Caitlin Seeley and Kailey Bostwick — in North’s youth AAU program. "We’ve been really excited ever since we started playing together to go play for North and to be able to play in front of crowds," Westermann says. She has averaged 10.6 points in SOC action and is coming off consecutive double-doubles to help keep the Tornado portions of those crowds happy. Most importantly, her dirty work has North in rare position — cleaning up in conference play. Reach reporter Tim Pyle at 776-4483 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! 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