Running not empty

Posted: March 23, 2009 |(0) Comments

Stephanie Running has earned every one of the honors - and there are plenty - after playing varsity basketball for four years at Oak Creek and becoming one of the most decorated athletes in school history.

Running was voted to the all-Southeast Conference team for the third time, which matches the number of times she has been voted to the CNI All-Suburban Team. She is a three-time all-Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association all-state pick.

One experience will stay with her after she graduates this spring, moves on to Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, and should be in the memory bank for a long, long time after she completes her playing days. It took place on senior night, Feb. 17.

Stephanie and her sister, Rebecca, a freshman, were in the game at the same time during the Knights' 71-28 rout of Burlington.

"It's always been a dream of mine to play with my sister, because me and her are really close," Stephanie said. "This year she was a freshman. I really was hoping she'd make varsity and she didn't.

"She got moved up at the end of the year and we got to play together a little bit on senior night.

"She had an assist to me, and that was probably one of the best moments of the season. Just hearing the announcer say, 'Running for two, from Running.' That was just really special. I've always wanted to play with her and I never really got a chance to.

"I know that if she would have been up there she could have done great this year. And I know she'll do great next year."

Stephanie finished her high school days as the second-leading scorer in school history. She accumulated 1,378 points, 103 fewer than Jean Vallier's total from 1993 through '97.

Running said she accomplished all her individual goals, which began with the hope she would start one game. She started in the first game of her freshman year and every game since.

One regret: "I wish I could have went to state one more time," Running said.

She is OK with the fact she will have to settle for making the trip her junior season. Running knows she has come a long way.

"My freshman year, I was not as physical and strong," Running said. "I was just an under-the-basket, lob player, like catch lobs, put them up.

"I really wanted to expand my game more. And now I feel like I can shoot the mid-range jumper. I have more moves. I've been a much better defensive player. And yeah, that comes with age, but I think the work that I've put in since my freshman year really helped me become the player I am now."

She has done a lot of that work with Pacesetter Basketball, which helps players whose goal is to continue to play after high school.

"That has really helped me expand my game," Running said. "I've worked on a lot of individual skills. The great thing about that is I get to work with the best players in the area. I get to work every week against the best players, so I get better, and then I make a lot of new friends that way, too. So I love it, a lot."

Running was quick to put the sectional semifinal loss to Milwaukee King in the rear-view mirror.

"King is such a good team, so losing to them didn't hurt as bad as losing to any other team," Running said. "Why I was so upset wasn't the fact that we lost; it was just that my high school career was over.

"The past week, I've really had to think about things and put it in perspective. I've made so many lifelong friends, and I'll still be with them for the next couple of months before I leave."

 

Jerry Karpowicz can be reached at (262) 446-6628. Read his blog at OakCreekNOW.com.