October 19, 2009
Fox tops in MTAL
It’s not the one featured in the song that begins with "26 miles across the sea..." because this Santa Catalina is situated in Monterey. Plus, it’s a high school -- not an island -- and it features one of the best female athletes in the Monterey Bay prep ranks -- 2010 senior Taylor Fox. She is facing an even bigger hoops challenge entering her senior year and also the question of whether she will play basketball or volleyball, or both, in college?
As Fox goes, so goes Santa Catalina
The 6-foot-1 Fox is already tops in the Mission Trials Athletic League (MTAL) basketball, having earned most valuable player honors in 2008-2009 after averaging 17.3 points per game. She buried 50 treys on the season and earned the most free throw attempts of any player in the league.
Leigh White, the MTAL Coach of the Year last season, offered this description when asked about her star player’s best basketball skills: "it’s her ability to score in diverse ways because she can shoot from three-point range, post up. finish her dribble-drives and score from in between."
Fox has also been a major component with Bob Bramlett’s West Valley Basketball Club. "Taylor’s stat line for our girls this past spring and summer was very impressive," Bramlett said, "she averaged over 18 a game and led us in scoring 90% of the time, as well as averaging over 9 rebounds a game."
Yet despite her accomplishments, she remains self-effacing. Asked about her best basketball skills, it was neither her shooting skills nor her play on the boards, Instead Fox offered, "probably being able to see the floor and helping my teammates play better."
Point of fact: she led Santa Catalina in assists last season. There is no ‘I’ in team and it’s also conspicuously lacking in Fox’s vocabulary.
There’s also this interesting tale regarding Fox’s biggest basketball influence. When queried on the subject, she offered "Pete Newell, who coached me when I was in junior high." Newell is the son of Pete Newell Sr., the late basketball icon who is enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame. Why did she select a coach that dates back five or so years in her playing days? "Because he helped me with my basketball IQ so early," Fox said.
Santa Catalina advanced through three playoff foes last season, topping Gonzales, Gunderson and King City before falling to Santa Cruz. This despite putting up more points than SC in two of the four quarters. The Cougars finished 18-7 overall on the season, 12-2 in league play while sharing the title with King City.
Fox also plays volleyball and was an all league honoree in 2008-2009 for Coach Mark Zalin. She has played multiple positions and been an integral member of yet another MTAL championship team.
Here White again on Fox: "Taylor is an absolute pleasure to coach. She’s the first one in the gym and the last one out, she is tough and tenacious and plays the same whether we are ahead or behind."
Santa Catalina lost seven seniors from last year’s squad, including All-Leaguers Michelle Briggs and Lottie Dowson, so the Cougar basketball roster will be a young one. But it sure helps having the best player in the league returning and on your side.