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03/16/2017 12:00 AMHeidi Clark is the kind of player that every good team needs—someone who’s versatile and can fill multiple roles. What Heidi feels most comfortable with and what her team needs are not always one in the same, but she’s always willing to do whatever it takes to help the Warriors prevail.
This year, the Valley Regional girls’ basketball team fared much better than it had in several seasons by posting a record of 14-10, while winning a game in both the Shoreline Conference and State tournaments. Heidi, an Essex resident, contributed to the Warriors’ success in many ways. The junior played both guard and forward and was often asked to defend a variety of opposing players on any given night. Although she always has a lot to concentrate on, Heidi knows how to keep all of her offensive and defensive abilities straight.
“You have to focus on what you’re doing and push everything out of your mind, so that you can do what you know how to do,” says Heidi.
One of the highlights of the Warriors’ recent season was when they won their Class M State Tournament matchup against Prince Tech. In that game, Heidi was an integral part of a 15-0 run that saw her make a pinpoint half-court pass that turned into a layup for Valley. On another possession, Heidi came up with a defensive rebound, flew down the length of the court, and was fouled underneath the hoop, after which she calmly sank two free throws.
Warriors’ Head Coach Geoff Konstan didn’t anticipate that he’d be leaning so heavily on Heidi in big spots, but he did, and it’s because Heidi became a better player than he expected this season.
“We didn’t necessarily see this coming. I can’t recall seeing a bigger jump from a kid from year to year ever before,” says Konstan. “She was just a huge factor on offense and defense for our team.”
This isn’t the first time that Heidi has made huge strides in a single year. As a freshman, Heidi earned the Warriors’ Most Improved Player Award. Heidi’s diligence and development has led to her ability to play multiple positions, which, in turn, has resulted in more playing time. Heidi’s increased minutes on the court have allowed her to improve even more.
Heidi’s role with the Warriors comes with some uncertainty about what she’ll be doing from game to game and practice to practice. However, Coach Konstan says that’s hardly a problem for Heidi.
“Heidi is a player that can play any position, which is not always fun. At practice, one day you work at the post, then you work with guards, and yet she embraced that. She would do whatever the team needed and would be there for her teammates,” Konstan says. “So she’s well-respected. She never misses a practice and she’s always on time. And most of all, she just never gets frustrated. She’s a really easy kid to root for.”
Heidi is also easy to root for when she’s playing volleyball at Valley. The sport may change, but Heidi’s team-first approach doesn’t, and that’s a crucial asset for the Warriors.
“Volleyball is definitely more of working as team to be successful,” Heidi says. “In basketball, players can stand out more and teams work to get the ball to the players that do what they need to do to help the team win.”
Similar to her role with the basketball team, Heidi also displays great versatility on the volleyball court. Heidi mainly the plays back row, but Head Coach Kathy Scott thinks that she’s a great front-row player, too. And just like Coach Konstan, Scott sees Heidi doing all the necessary work to become a better player.
“What stood out to me about Heidi is that she was really dedicated,” Coach Scott says. “She comes into every practice, works really hard, and pushes other players to work hard, as well. She was really impressive.”
Equally as impressive was the volleyball team’s record last fall, when Valley went 16-8 on its way to making the Class S State Tournament quarterfinals. Coach Scott says that Heidi played big part in helping the Warriors have a successful year. Heidi recorded 57 digs with 136 receptions on the season.
“She’s one of the best players we had defensively and being able to read the other team’s hitters,” says Scott. “This was her first year on varsity. When she stepped on the court and came out at practices, she was ready to go. She grabbed onto her role and she just did it.”
In the end, regardless of what team Heidi is playing for, there’s no question that she cares deeply about all of her teammates on both the Warriors’ basketball and volleyball squads.
“It was fun to play volleyball and basketball,” says Heidi. “The teams and the players have a lot of good people involved and it’s just nice to be around them.”