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Cook stirs up success at OSU Photo courtesy OSU Oregon State�s Ericka Cook, a former North Medford star, soars past the defense on this shot attempt. Former North star helps carry Beavs into NIT tourney By Greg Stiles Ericka Cook has been a model of consistency for the Oregon State women�s basketball team this season. The 6-foot-3 junior forward out of North Medford High School began the season with 12 points against Portland State. She went on to average 12.6 points in non-conference games and matched the 12.6 average in Pac-10 action. More importantly, Cook has given the Beavers an inside scoring threat to balance Pac-10 player of the year Felicia Ragland�s 19.9 per game. That balance has enabled OSU to produce a 16-12 record and a post-season berth for the first time since 1996. "She�s really worked on her shooting touch around the basket," OSU coach Judy Spoelstra says of Cook. "You get the feeling that she�s a lot more confident turning and going up on people." Cook gets another chance to shine Friday night at Gill Coliseum, where she shot 52.6 percent (81 of 154) from the field during the regular season. The Beavers will play host to Brigham Young in the opening round of the Women�s National Invitational Tournament. "She�s really one of the more athletic power forwards in the Pac-10," Spoelstra says. "She�s added a couple more moves to her repertoire and I think she�s really improved her rebounding. She�s had to battle against some really tough post players � people who have outsized her � and she�s been quick to box out." It�s bumping up against those bigger players that has been challenging for Cook, who has averaged 6.1 rebounds (with a high of 13 against Washington) and nearly one blocked shot per game this season. "I eat a lot, but I just can�t put on weight," Cook says. "I�m just not a big girl. I�m one of the smallest forwards in the Pac-10. I guess it�s because of my Dad (former Klamath Union star and University of Texas player B.G. Brosterhous), he�s lanky and I�m just like that. My mom (Annie Wenger) has bigger bones and a bigger structure. But I didn�t get any of that from her unfortunately." The Beavers finished the regular season strong, winning four of their final five before falling to emotionally charged Oregon, 72-60, last Saturday. In that stretch, OSU knocked off Southern California and UCLA on the road and defeated Arizona and Arizona State � both ranked in the Top 25 at the time � at home. Cook celebrated her 22nd birthday by scoring 20 points in a 67-66 win over the Wildcats as she hit 9 of 12 shots from the floor. She added 15 points two nights later against the Sun Devils. "That was really big for us," Cook says. Buoyed by the late run, the Beavers finished in the middle of the pack this season in the Pac-10, and a 20-win season wasn�t beyond reach. Cook says much of the credit for the Beavers� success goes back to the team�s summer trip to Europe. "It allowed us to get more games under our belts," she says. "Felicia�s game has gotten so much better and she�s matured so much. She knows the strength and weaknesses of her teammates. She knows how to pass me the ball and she knows if she throws it up there, I�ll go get it." The summer trip was also a chance for Cook to get closer to her roots, for it was on a European basketball court her parents met. She was born in Monaco, France, where she lived until moving to Salem in 1995, prior to another move to Medford in 1997. Having made quick transactions, she made another one at the start of her sophomore season when she married former Oregon State baseball player B.R. Cook, who is now in spring training with the St. Louis Cardinals organization. "People always talk to me about it being a distraction being married," Cook says. "I don�t think it has been. The distraction in college is running around, finding out who you�re going to date. I haven�t had to deal with that since my freshman year. "I�ve got my role and I can understand it. As a wife and student-athlete, I understand everything a lot better." The real struggle, she says, is understanding baseball. "If I could change one thing about (B.R.), he�d be a basketball player," Cook says. "I don�t know any of the rules or any of that. But I�m starting to learn about that." And learning is something Cook does quite well. She came to America fluent in three languages � French, English and Italian � and is now working on Spanish. Her academic majors are French and international business with a minor in psychology. She sees herself working for a company such as Nike, putting her diverse language skills to use. But she has no intentions of setting up shop on the continent. "Life is so much easier out here than in Europe," Cook says. "The economy is so messed up there. It�s really tough. I really miss home and it�s cool to go there in the summer. But I wouldn�t want to live there. I�ve adapted to life here and I don�t think my husband would last there; it would drive him nuts." Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4483, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.