Double Teamed : Two Seasons at Once for Clavadetscher

WEST HILLS —  So, Kerrie Clavadetscher, which sport do you want to play this winter, basketball or soccer?

Both.

Deion Sanders has fame, fortune and annoying commercials but even he doesn’t mix his sports like pizza toppings.

Clavadetscher, however, is more than halfway through a season in which she starts and stars concurrently for the Chaminade High girls’ basketball and soccer teams while keeping up with the academic rigors of the demanding private school.

The sophomore’s skills, stamina and schoolwork were all areas of concern when she began her dual season in November, but with 13 goals on the soccer field, an average of nine points on the court and continued good grades in the classroom, Clavadetscher has pulled off an unusual double play.

“I don’t know where she gets the endurance to do this,” said Chaminade girls’ soccer coach Mike Evans, for whom Clavadetscher is a striker and the team’s leading scorer.

“She never once complains that she’s tired, never leaves my practices early and always offers to stay after and work on shots.”

Clavadetscher first thought of playing both sports last summer.

A soccer player since age 5 and a basketball player since the sixth grade, she played only basketball as a Chaminade freshman but realized her soccer skills were becoming rusty.

“I thought I needed a break [from soccer] but in order to become better at it I knew I needed to play,” Clavadetscher said.

The first step was broaching the subject with Chaminade girls’ basketball Coach Diane Garza, who was counting on the 5-foot-8 Clavadetscher to help anchor the Eagles’ backcourt as a shooting guard.

“My initial reaction was to let her do both because I’d rather let her do that than have her choose soccer over basketball,” said Garza, whose team is 5-11, 0-5 in league play. “I didn’t want to force her to make that decision. We need her on the basketball team; she helps us a lot.”

Evans was not as open to the proposal. His team is defending Mission League champion and at the start of the season was stacked with talent. He was not struck by Clavadetscher’s soccer ability and worried that she was orchestrating a publicity stunt.

“I said I didn’t encourage it; I didn’t know she was anything special,” Evans said.

But after an October meeting that included Clavadetscher, her mother, both coaches and Chaminade Athletic Director Ed Croson, it was determined that Clavadetscher would get a trial period of several weeks. By the end, there was little doubt she could handle the load.

On Dec. 13, Clavadetscher played the first half of a basketball game against El Camino Real, contributing four points to the Eagles’ eventual 45-37 victory. As her basketball teammates finished that game, Clavadetscher took the field and scored a goal in Chaminade’s 4-0 soccer victory over Oak Park.

In early January, Clavadetscher experienced an extraordinary athletic week.

She played two entire soccer matches on Wednesday, Jan. 10, the second an overtime victory over Notre Dame in which she scored the winning goal.

She played two complete basketball games on Jan. 11, scoring nine of her team’s 28 points as the Eagles were trounced by Alemany.

There were also three soccer practices and three basketball workouts--one at 8 a.m. on a Saturday.

Clavadetscher’s daily schedule begins with a 6:30 a.m. wakeup at her home in Canoga Park, continues with classes at Chaminade from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m., then closes with soccer and basketball practices and/or games from 3:30 to 9 p.m.

In her little open time, she tries to eat and study for her six classes.

“There’s a coaches’ office in the girls’ locker room so a coach lets me in between sports and I lock the door so I can study,” Clavadetscher said. “I’ll let one or two of my friends come in but only the ones who’ll be quiet and won’t goof around.”

Dinner is often provided by Sue Clavadetscher, who takes her daughter out for a quick restaurant meal or arrives at the coaches’ office bearing food in Tupperware or on paper plates.

“I’ve enjoyed watching her achieve all these things,” said Sue Clavadetscher, who drives Kerrie to and from school and sports. “In the beginning I worried about [her schoolwork] but physically and mentally I wasn’t worried about her because she’s the type that thrives on being busy.”

Although the demands on her time would make a workaholic contemplate a cruise, Clavadetscher said she has few regrets over the course she plotted.

“On Friday nights when I have to practice or play I sometimes think I could be out doing something with somebody,” Clavadetscher said. “But I like sports and my friends are all people on the teams so it’s not as if I don’t get to socialize. They say I’m crazy but I like doing it and I’m always with people I like.”

A strong rapport with and between Clavadetscher’s coaches has smoothed her way.

Evans and Garza say there has been no friction over having to share her, since Clavadetscher means so much to each team.

“I’ve been more than impressed with her,” said Evans, whose team (13-6-2, 4-1-1) has counted on Clavadetscher heavily since the loss of three senior starters to knee injuries.

“She’s very skilled, one of the fastest players on the team and she’s very opportunistic. We need that.”

Clavadetscher has not missed a soccer match but did not attend two basketball games due to her schedule. Still, Garza is gung-ho for the arrangement.

“Even after a soccer practice she still outruns most of my girls in sprints,” said Garza, who lauds Clavadetscher for her defensive play and ability to move between shooting and point guard.

Clavadetscher confirms Garza’s earlier fears by saying she would have picked soccer over basketball had a choice been necessary. But she adds that she has no plans to drop either sport in the next two years.

“I want to keep playing both and I want to get a scholarship in one of them,” Clavadetscher said. “I think I’m most likely to get one in soccer.”

Sue Clavadetscher said she supports Kerrie’s plan to continue with both sports. She also knows the schedule will only get more cluttered.

“Right now I feel that I see a lot of her after sports and driving to and from places,” she said. “Next year may be different because she’ll be driving. I may have to make a reservation.”