Norville tradition continues at Batavia
If it's the second millennium, there must be a Norville competing for Batavia.
Tamar Norville is the current model, a junior three-sport athlete who follows the well-worn path of siblings Matthew Jr. (Class of 2000), James (2001), Nikki (2003), Candace (2006) Josiah (2008) and Melissa (2009).
Seven of Nine was not just a character in "Star Trek: Voyager." Tamar will soon be followed by Ian and Cassie.
"We're training them," said Tamar, whose name in Hebrew means "date palm." Her parents, Matthew and Felicia, "liked the way it sounded."
Opposing Upstate Eight Conference coaches may tire of hearing the Norville name, as did coaches from the Western Sun and Suburban Prairie conferences. But it's big at Illinois College, where Matt Sr. and each of his children have attended and where Tamar plans on going as well. Candace, in fact, was the two-time winner of the college's Doris B. Hopper Award honoring the top female athlete.
Tamar - pronounced "Tay-mar" - denied there was much competition among siblings.
"It's really fun to cheer them on and see how they are excelling in all of their sports," she said. "They're showing me the way it's done, how to cope with three sports and how to compete at a varsity level now in all three."
Inspired by former three-sport athletes Matthew Sr. and Felicia - they attended St. Charles High School and the now-gone Chicago school Unity High, respectively - the Norville kids have most everything covered.
Tamar, who also sings in Batavia's Chamber Choir, played No. 1 and No. 2 doubles last year for the Bulldogs' Western Sun champion varsity tennis team. In the same capacity now she's 8-1 overall, all but one of those matches with doubles partner Marguerite Mallory.
In winter Tamar plays basketball as has every other Norville. Come springtime she moves to track. A sprinter and jumper, in 2010 she just missed qualifying downstate with a personal-best 33-foot, 103/4-inch triple jump at sectionals.
She thinks it's kind of odd not everyone has as many role models available right at the dinner table. With most of her siblings having moved on, Tamar finds herself a little out of sorts.
"It's like 'Whoa,'" she said. "I'm the oldest one in the house!"
Fly with the eaglesIn a DuPage Valley Conference boys golf meet Tuesday at Orchard Valley Golf Course in Aurora, West Aurora's Nick Pavlik shot a 3-under 33 to take medalist honors in the Blackhawks' team victory over West Chicago.West Aurora coach Jay Bauer said Pavlik's round tied the program record for 9 holes with three other golfers: Justin Ahasic, who did it twice in 1998; Brandon Vicory in 2006; and Kurtis Luedtke in 2007. Playing the front nine at Orchard Valley, Pavlik told his coach he drove the green on the par-4 No. 1 and sank the 10-foot putt for eagle. He birdied No. 2 with another 10-foot putt, and on No. 4 chipped in from 30 feet for a second eagle. Bauer reported that Pavlik made 7 greens in regulation and required only 14 putts. His approach shots reached an average of 14 feet away from the pin.On the other hand, Pavlik is just 66 strokes away from the 18-hole score this writer carded last Sunday at Aurora's Phillips Park.In the runningYork's boys opened the first week of the Illinois Cross Country Coaches Poll at No. 1 when the coaches released the report on Sept. 9. Rounding out the top five were Oak Park, Palatine, Neuqua Valley and, in a fifth-place tie, O'Fallon and New Trier.Naperville North opened in the No. 12 slot with St. Charles North at No. 15. Glenbard West was among the "best of the rest."In girls rankings, Palatine debuted at No. 1. Schaumburg, Downers Grove North, Glenbard West, York, Naperville North and Wheaton Warrenville South comprised Nos. 2-7. The top 15 also included Geneva at No. 10 and Naperville Central at No. 13. Bartlett, Downers Grove South, Hinsdale Central and St. Charles East were in the "best of" category.On top of that, Mark McCabe - Hinsdale Central girls coach and one of the coaches who participates in the poll - reviewed the last decade's state meet performances to see how teams compared. The top teams over the past 10 years are no surprise: York (six titles since 2000) among the boys, Naperville North (three titles) among the girls.The overall boys Top 10: York, Naperville North, Neuqua Valley, Palatine, Glenbard South, Lyons Twp., Waubonsie Valley, Prospect and St. Charles North.The overall girls Top 10: Naperville North, Palatine, Hinsdale Central, Sandburg, York, Lyons, Lockport, Lake Park, Geneva and Wheaton North.Mail it inThe Oct. 3 deadline approaches for student-athletes in the Class of 2011 to submit their applications for the 17th annual Wendy's High School Heisman. The award honors athleticism, classroom excellence and community service.Over the past 16 years more than 250,000 high school seniors have represented their schools throughout the process, which culminates in the awarding of one male and one female athlete selected in New York City at the time of the collegiate Heisman Award announcement.Last year's Illinois state finalists included St. Charles East's Tim Johnson, Aurora Central Catholic's Andrew Scott and Burlington Central's Margaret Gannon.For information and to apply, students can visit WendysHeisman.com, call (800) 205-6367 or contact their high school principal, guidance counselor or athletic director. The first 41,100 applicants will receiver a Wendy's gift card randomly valued between $5 and $50.