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With focus on basketball, Carrigan stars Photo from Colorado Christian University Brooke Carrigan averages 21.1 points. By GREG STILES The grand experiment is over. The double life of a collegiate volleyball/basketball player just wasn't the thrill North Medford High graduate Brooke Carrigan anticipated. Carrigan tried playing both sports last year as a sophomore at Colorado Christian University, which is just outside Denver. But the demands of an NCAA volleyball season that runs from August into December collide squarely with basketball, with workouts starting in October and games in November. While she flourished on the volleyball court, she got such a late start in basketball that she was far from the impact player for the Cougars she was as a freshman. "There was just no way to get around it," Carrigan says. "I got one weekend off before I started playing (basketball) games. That hurt me a lot, not having any preseason." So the 5-foot-10 Carrigan cast volleyball aside to concentrate on basketball. Carrigan saw her scoring average drop from 16.2 to 13.4 points last year. But she has bounced back with a vengeance. "I didn't want to let my team down again," Carrigan said. "I felt like I wasn't part of the program (by missing the first two months). I really missed out and wanted to contribute again." Over Thanksgiving weekend she erupted for 35 points against Seattle Pacific, a school that thought she was too small to fit into its plans, as Colorado Christian won, 84-81. On Dec. 7, Carrigan surpassed both her collegiate and high school career scoring highs when she pumped in 40 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference season-opener, a 75-74 win over Regis University of Denver. Coupled with a 17-point outing against Chaldron State, in which she hit 7 of 11 field goal attempts, Carrigan was named RMAC East Division player of the week. "I don't know if the Regis game was my best, but it was the most fun," Carrigan admits. "I didn't have to work that hard for all those points because my teammates did a good job of getting me the ball." Last Saturday, Carrigan connected on 8 of 11 shots from the field for 21 points to go with nine rebounds in 23 minutes of work as Colorado Christian walloped RMAC rival Fort Lewis, 99-44. "You look at her and say: `That kid can score 22 points a game?"' Cougar coach Lisa Parker says. "But she's definitely helped turn this program around. She's a Division I (caliber) player and we're fortunate to have her here. "She's so unselfish that we've had to work at getting her to be a little more selfish." While the Cougars are 7-8 overall and 4-5 in the RMAC, they sport the most potent offense in the conference. Tina Redmond is the No. 2 Division II scorer in the country (23.6 ppg), while Carrigan is No. 11 at 21.4. They combine for better than half of CCU's 77.7 point average and are 1-2 in conference scoring. The tandem is also 1-2 in CCU career scoring. Carrigan has 1,120 points and Redmond 1,115. "She's more of an outside player and I'm inside," Carrigan says. "We see a lot of double-teams or box-and-ones." While the Cougars have been entertaining on offense, they've struggled on defense. Even when it scored a season-high 106 points against Metro State, Colorado Christian lost, 111-106. "We need some height and some rebounders," Parker admits. "I think we're about one body short right now." Carrigan has been a considerable presence in team meetings as well as in the box score. "She has taken a lot more verbal leadership this year," says Parker. "If there is a problem or an issue, she's one of the first to speak up. This isn't something she would've done in the past." Carrigan's influence goes beyond the present. After recruits from Montana and Oklahoma were housed with Carrigan, they signed with Colorado Christian. "She has the biggest heart in the world," Parker says. "She's tuned into other people's feelings and concerns. She's friendly, fun and upbeat. She's spiritually and morally a great representative." Colorado Christian, with an enrollment of 830 at the Lakewood campus, is among the smallest Division II schools. The RMAC is the largest Division II league with 14 schools. Carrigan considers the small, family atmosphere a selling point for a school in the middle of a major metropolitan area. "You're going to be taken care of here," Carrigan says. "When I went through a lot last year, the team was here for me -- like family." Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA