No slowing down Tarter

Coming off a superb track season, it wouldn't have been a total shock if Natalie Tarter decided to quit playing for the Batavia girls basketball team and focus exclusively on one sport.

But that was not the plan Tarter, a junior guard/forward, had in mind.

"I thought I might as well play because I have the time," Tarter said. "You only get one life, so I might as well play."

Batavia coach Tim DeBruycker couldn't have been more relieved to hear that the leading scorer from last year's team had every intention of returning.

Just to be sure, though, at the end of last track season, DeBruycker asked Tarter what her plans were.

"She said she planned on playing all summer and planned on playing (in the winter), and I took her word for it," he said. "I'm very glad she decided to keep playing."

Tarter is coming off a super successful sophomore season in both basketball and track.

In basketball in her first year on varsity, she led the Bulldogs in scoring (13.5 points per game), rebounding (5.1 rpg), free throw shooting (200 attempts) and steals (2.4 spg). She was also the team's most consistent player and made the Western Sun Conference's first team.

In track, she placed second in the state in the 100 hurdles, third in the 300 hurdles and fourth in the 100 dash.

As a freshman she finished eighth in the state in the 100 hurdles and established herself as a track star. But a basketball star as well the next year? That was a nice surprise.

"I just came out and gave it a try," Tarter said. "Things went well last year."

DeBruycker, however, knew he was getting an athletic player last year. The biggest surprise for him out of Tarter was how well she got to the free-throw line. The 200 attempts for the 5-foot-8 Tarter were 145 more than the next closest Bulldog.

"I think she broke into the conference as a person who could leap, and the girls weren't expecting that," DeBruycker said. "She'd go up and get fouled."

Tarter's track skills have certainly helped her on the court. Good luck trying to catch up with her on a fast break.

"When we get out and run, she can get to the basket faster than anyone else," DeBruycker said. "You just can't match her speed."

"When one of us gets the ball to her, it's like, 'Natalie, go,'" fellow track and basketball teammate Melissa Norville added. "It's so easy because she is so fast."

It's no surprise Tarter has picked up exactly where she left off last year. She's leading the team in scoring with her 14 points per game. At the IMSA tournament in which the Bulldogs won, she didn't play or played very little of the fourth quarters of all three games which Batavia won handily.

Tarter scored a game-high 16 points in Batavia's 48-43 win over conference opponent Yorkville. That gave the Bulldogs a 4-0 record (through Wednesday's games).

"So far, it's the same thing," DeBruycker said. "(Our opponents) know (what she is going to do), but you just can't stop her."

Tough to stop in basketball and even tougher to beat on the track. The same sort of dominance is expected out of Tarter in the spring.

This spring, however, will be different for Tarter because she won't be worried about what colleges are watching her perform. Her big decision on where to attend college is already taken care of.

In September, Tarter gave the nod to Wisconsin for track. She wanted to attend a Big 10 school not to far away from home, and this was perfect.

Wisconsin captured Tarter's attention when the basketball team traveled there for a tournament two summers ago.

"It's always been one of those schools where you are like, 'Oh, wouldn't it be cool to go there?,'" Tarter said. "Then when they offered me a full ride, I was like, 'Oh, that's cool.' When I visited, I really liked it. It reminded me of Batavia. I love it here, and I wanted to bring that with me.

"It's a lot of pressure off. It's a big relief knowing I am going somewhere. I don't have to worry about performance or anything like that."

Track may be the first thing Tarter is known for, but it's basketball season now, and that's all she's concerned with.

"She loves track, but in basketball now, track is not even an option," Norville said. "She is very focused during the basketball season."