Parvin has Panthers thinking league title
Girls' basketball team has no interest in splitting another Marmonte crown
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers DOUBLE DRIBBLE- Newbury Park's Shari Harris runs through training drills during practice.

Last season, the Newbury Park High girls' basketball team earned a share of the Marmonte League championship. A year later, the Panthers want the title all to themselves.

"There are two things I really don't like: sharing and losing," Newbury Park senior Shari Harris said. "We shared the title last year and then lost in the second round of the playoffs. I want our team to do better than that this season."

Although NPHS lost standouts Arlene Harris and Nikki Graham to graduation, the Panthers will return juniors Doris ParkSherman and Sidney Dobner, as well as seniors Sarah Godfrey and Harris.

Nori Parvin, who enters her 34th year as the Panthers coach with 482 career victories, said Newbury Park will be a fast group on the floor.

"We are not as tall as we have been in the past, but we have some pretty good shooters, and we are pretty quick," Parvin said.

Harris agreed with her coach.

"We are a go-go-go type of team on offense that wants to run," Harris said. "It's kind of hard to keep up sometimes in practice, but with the size of our team, it's something we have to do."

Jordan Bridges

Parvin said without a true center, the Panthers will use many different lineups. Stephanie McBride may have been the likely choice to play center, but the senior has decided to sit out the basketball season to focus primarily on her volleyball career. Instead, Godfrey, ParkSherman and Harris could split time in the middle.

"Wherever Parv tells me to go, I'll go," Harris said. "If she tells me to be a shooting guard, I'll be a shooting guard. If she tells me to play forward or center, I'll do that. I'd like to be a shooting guard, but I understand we don't have as much height this year, and I have to do what's best for the team."

Newbury Park needs ParkSherman in its lineup. The junior has missed the last six weeks with a right knee injury but is expected back in the lineup by the time the Panthers compete in the Moorpark Tip-Off against Camarillo High on Nov. 29. ParkSherman averaged 9.8 points and 8.6 rebounds a game in '06.

Doris Park-Sherman

"Before (Park-Sherman) got hurt, she was really improving her game," Parvin said. "She is a great inside-outside player, and she has worked on moving to the basket and her shot a lot over the summer."

Handling the point guard duties will be Dobner, who averaged 7.7 points and 3.6 assists a contest last season. Dobner also played well on defense, averaging 2.3 steals per game.

Other players that should contribute to the Panthers this season include junior Brooke Takeguma, senior Torri Galaviz and senior Jordan Bridges.

"We've always had good athletes at Newbury, but I think we have a little more skilled athletes than we've had in the past," Parvin said. "Our strength this season will have to come from our defense and our free-throw shooting."

According to Harris, the Marmonte League will once again be very competitive. Still, the senior believes every team will be gunning for the Panthers.

"Newbury will always have a target on its back just because of all the success we've had in the past," Harris said. "It is going to be hard to win the league this year. It seems nobody has a superstartype player on their team, so it should come down to the wire."

Sidney Dobner

Parvin reminds her team every day that the most important thing is to have fun and enjoy the game.

"I always say that NPHS stands for 'Nice People High School,'" Parvin said. "I try to stress sportsmanship with all my teams and tell them if they aren't having fun, it's not worth playing."

Harris said Parvin's attitude has rubbed off on her.

"When I first started playing at Newbury, I would have a temper on the court," Harris said.

"That all changed because of Parv. She stresses good sportsmanship, and she backs it up since she's never received a technical foul in all her time coaching. Neither have her players, so I don't want to be the first one that does."

Parvin is only 18 victories away from the illustrious 500 win mark, but the coach said she doesn't keep track of her records and is only told about them through the school's faculty and local newspapers.

Although Parvin has been coaching the Panthers since Francis Ford Coppola first released "The Godfather: Part II," she has no plans on hanging up her whistle any time soon.

"What keeps me here is the kids," Parvin said. "I like watching them grow as people, not just as basketball players."