On a team blessed with seniority, experience and depth at every position, it seems improbable that there would be much room for an underclassman to contribute, let alone shine as a leader.
Such is not the case, however, for the University's women's basketball team. Sophomore forward Tiffany Sardin has emerged as a crucial player on the team -- especially in recent conference games -- despite her relative lack of experience.
After some difficulty with leadership last season and occasionally tense relations between teammates, the Cavaliers chose to elect not seasoned Virginia veterans, but Sardin and junior walk-on forward Kate Kreager as their captains for the 2003-2004 season.
The election may have come as a surprise to some fans since Sardin was sidelined last season for six games with a severe ankle sprain and Kreager was an unexpected addition to the team from Xavier University. Sardin also re-sprained the ankle in addition to tearing several ligaments in the third scrimmage of the 2003 preseason.
Although Sardin was not at 100 percent until mid-season, she has played in every regular season game thus far and has emerged as a leader for Virginia.
"I definitely feel like [the injury] set me back," Sardin said. "But the help of my teammates and the coaching staff has made the transition a lot easier. They gave me confidence, boosted me up and made we work harder."
This season Sardin is averaging 3.4 points and 1.9 rebounds per game, but those numbers pale in comparison to her actual contributions and impact in games, both offensively and defensively.
While her presence on the court has been significant all season, it is especially critical now as the Cavaliers face some of the nation's top teams in conference competition.
In Virginia's 60-59 victory over Georgia Tech earlier this month, Sardin scored only three points in 14 minutes, but her defensive effort in the closing minutes of the game proved imperative in the Cavaliers winning their first ACC game of the season.
Throughout the contest, the Cavaliers were unable to come up with a defensive stop against Yellow Jackets' star forward Fallon Stokes. She scored 26 points and generated virtually all of Tech's offense. As the teams passed the lead back and forth in the final moments, it was Sardin who came through with decisive defensive stops to shut down Stokes.
"Tiffany Sardin played very well tonight against Fallon Stokes at the end of the game," Virginia coach Debbie Ryan said. "That was one of the key things that happened. I don't know if people realize that. That sort of broke the ice for us."
In the narrow four-point victory over N.C. State later that week, Sardin came off the bench for a career-high 14 points in 24 minutes. She also contributed four rebounds to the team's first ACC road win of the season.
"She comes off the bench and just explodes," Ryan said. "This is the way she played in the early part of the preseason before she hurt her ankle. Now she's feeling better and she's got her confidence back. She knows she's a great player, and she plays like that every night."
Even against then No. 1 Duke, Sardin managed to score eight points and gather three rebounds to help Virginia contend with, and even scare, the Blue Devils.
Then, in Virginia's overtime win at Florida State, Sardin recorded 12 points and four rebounds in 23 minutes of play, significantly contributing to the Cavaliers' close victory.
Even after the graduation of key players like senior forward Anna Crosswhite and senior guards Anna Prillaman and Safiya Grant-Fairley, the team will be able to rely on and turn to Sardin. The presence of a young leader and talent like Tiffany Sardin means the future of the Virginia team will remain bright for at least a few more years.
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