WASHINGTON, D.C. -- At the end of the USA Women's Basketball U-19 team's first practice at Bender Arena, head coach Gail Geostenkors had her team run a drill that stressed running up the court and making lay-ups. If the team did not make a certain amount of simulated fast-break lay-ups in 90 seconds, then they would do the drill again. As the drill was repeated a few times, the 12 young women that make up the team were getting downtrodden. There was one voice, however, that was constantly yelling encouragement to the fellow players. That voice belonged to Virginia sophomore point guard Sharnee Zoll.
"It was her leadership first and foremost," Geostenkors said, referring to what helped Zoll make the team. "She's also a true point guard -- our other guards are combo guards."
Zoll's ability to play the point effectively was on display at the end of practice as she ran the offense during a short five-on-five game. Zoll was keeping tabs on her teammates on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court. Zoll, however, did not earn a spot on the team solely because of practice. Zoll played well for Team USA during the International Sports Invitational (ISI), a tune-up tournament for the upcoming U-19 World Championships. In the ISI, Zoll started one of the four games and saw her playing time increase as the tournament went on.
"It was good," Zoll said, referring to her start in the tournament. "I was working hard in practice and the first game I didn't get a lot of minutes. But you can't come here and expect to start over some of these girls. So [starting] was definitely an honor."
Zoll could be earning more starts for Team USA when the World Championships are played July 15-24 in Tunisia because three of the team's six guards have only played in high school. In Zoll's freshman season, she set a school freshman record for assists with 159, a record that was formerly held by Zoll's idol, Dawn Staley. Zoll's play also improved as the season continued as evidenced by her 20-point performance against Minnesota in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Zoll's play with Virginia did not go unnoticed by Geostenkors, who is also the head coach at ACC rival Duke.
"When she was trying out, no one on the committee really knew Sharnee because they were from other conferences," Geostenkors said. "I felt very comfortable talking about her, understanding that she was a great leader, and someone who could help us be successful in this tournament."
Being a player with experience is an odd feeling for Zoll, who played with five seniors at Virginia last year. Zoll, however, showed an ability to acclimate quickly to the college game as she started 31 of Virginia's 32 games; the other Cavalier freshmen combined for only one start on the season. The only game that Zoll did not start was senior night, when all five Virginia seniors started their final home game. Now that Zoll is a seasoned veteran on the team, she feels she will have more confidence conversing with her fellow teammates.
"These girls are all my age or younger," Zoll said. "So it's not as intimidating as when I was telling fourth-years to get over when they were looking at me and thinking 'Freshman, shut up.' That's definitely one of the big differences."
Now that the tryouts are over, Zoll is focusing on the World Championships, where she feels that the other teams will be bring their best game against the United States. For the moment, however, she is just trying to take in the feeling of wearing the U.S. jersey.
"It's an honor," Zoll said. "Not just being with these players, but to be part of all the players who have worn U.S.A. across their chests before. Obviously Dawn [Staley], Lisa Leslie, Sheryl Swoopes, all of the greats have worn U.S.A. And then being on this team, with these girls, it's definitely an honor."
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