Freshman Yamasaki leads on, off the court

Wednesday, February 3, 1999

By Dana Mulhauser Senior staff writer

The girl in the shirt emblazoned with "Yamasaki" was cautious in her approach to the storied Stanford women's basketball team. She went to all the games but stood quietly on the sidelines, wearing her number 25. Around the players she smiled shyly, holding back her words and emotions in awe of those around her.

In other words, the young fan was the antithesis of her heroine, freshman basketball phenom Lindsey Yamasaki.

Though Yamasaki is new to the team, she is anything but shy. She has taken the Cardinal by storm this year, leading the team with an average of 14.2 points per game. She took over a starting role in the first month of the season, and has risen to tie sophomore Carolyn Moos for the team lead in rebounds and to trail only point guard Milena Flores in assists and minutes.

"Being a starter there's that extra pressure on you, and I had to become a natural leader, at least on the floor," Yamasaki said.

She has been a leader off the court as well as on, undeterred by her freshman status from being a strong voice in the locker room.

"If I'm going to say something to someone, I'll say it, no matter what year they are," she said.

As one of a small number of Asian-American top-tier basketball players, Yamasaki has additional incentive to take a leading role both on the court and off.

"When I was growing up, I slowly started seeing that there weren't many other Asian Americans playing," she said. "I'm unique in that sense."

Yamasaki's go-getter attitude is not surprising, considering her athletic family background.

"My whole family is very sports-oriented," she said. "My brother and sister are in athletics: My sister played volleyball and softball and my brother plays baseball. . . . My mom was a surfer girl at Long Beach State and my dad played volleyball at Fresno State."

Her brother, in fact, might be one of the few people who can give her a tough game in basketball. "He's really good. . . . I'm not sure who'd win."

However, Yamasaki calls volleyball, not basketball, the "family game." She has fulfilled that part of the family destiny as well, winning the Oregon State Gatorade Player of the Year Award in volleyball as well as basketball as a senior.

She was recruited to Stanford to play both sports, but redshirted volleyball this year to concentrate on basketball.

She hasn't yet decided whether she'll play volleyball next year, saying, "it's all up in the air - we'll see in the spring."

Yamasaki has appreciated the opportunity to concentrate fully on basketball this year.

"I got to learn all the plays and start the season on time," something that would have been hampered by play on the volleyball team, which finishes its season in December, after the basketball team has begun play.

Those first two months of the basketball season were a breakout period for Yamasaki, who surprised even herself with double-figure points in her first two games against ranked opponents Arkansas and Duke.

"When I came to the team I didn't know what to expect;" she said.

Those first two games, both losses, were a taste of what was to come for the team, which stumbled early and only recently climbed above the .500 mark despite Yamasaki's strong play.

"It's been hard," Yamasaki said. "I only lost about five games in high school, so it's been tough to get used to."

The team did have several early-season highlights, including an upset of then-No. 1 Purdue, a game in which Yamasaki scored 18 points and pulled down nine rebounds.

"That was such a fun game," Yamasaki said. "We were on our game, and it proved to us what we can do."

After the game, Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer praised Yamasaki's contribution, saying, "I think Lindsey had a great game. I think she really showed people her abilities, her skills and her poise."

One of Yamasaki's personal high points was playing in front of family and friends when the team played at Oregon State and Oregon.

"It was exciting seeing my family, but I might have played a little better without the pressure," said Yamasaki, who notched only one point in the first half but picked up the pace in the second half to finish with 11 in the win over Oregon State.

The team has shown recent signs of improvement, with a 7-2 record in the Pacific 10 Conference and a four-game win streak. Yamasaki has high hopes for the young team that sports five freshman and four sophomores.

"We have spurts of marvelous play where we can beat anyone, but we're very inexperienced," she said. "If we play like we can play, our team can do a lot. I can't say we'll win it all, but we'll see."

Article URL: The Stanford Daily