McCarty Pays Visit To Warsaw

Warsaw Community High School had an unexpected guest Thursday morning when Stephanie White-McCarty stopped in on her way from Lafayette to Fort Wayne.

McCarty, a standout at Seeger High School and Purdue University now playing for the Indiana Fever in the Women's National Basketball Association, was hammering out details for a camp she is holding in Fort Wayne in September.

McCarty's list of accomplishments in high school alone are impressive.

While at Seeger High School, McCarty led the Patriots to a 92-7 record over four seasons. After being named All-State three years and All-American two years, she was named the national prep player of the year by Gatorade, Parade Magazine, and USA Today. McCarty averaged 29 points per game, 11.2 rebounds, 6.9 assists, 6.5 steals and 1.5 blocks per game in her high school career, and she still holds Indiana's career scoring record with 2,869 points.

"I think being the leading scorer is not something you aspire to," said McCarty. "It's something that comes with the game. The more success your team has, the more opportunity you have to score. My goals were more centered around being Miss Basketball and being an Indiana All-Star.

"My best memories are being an Indiana All-Star and Miss Basketball. It's what kids dream of when they are growing up."

More than one person has already compared one local athlete to McCarty: Shanna Zolman. The phenom from Wawasee, now a junior, has led the state in scoring since her first high school game. In two years, Zolman has tallied more than 1,300 points, and many say she could very well break McCarty's record.

"I haven't had the opportunity to see Shanna Zolman play, but I look forward to seeing her in the future," said McCarty. "I also look forward to sending her a card in a few years if she breaks the record."

However, McCarty's basketball feats did not come easily. Her dreams only became reality with much determination and hard work.

"I used to get up at about 5:30 a.m. and have breakfast with my grandpa," said McCarty. "Then he would take me to the gym by 6 a.m so I could workout and shoot around. Then I would go to class and practice. After I got home I would do my homework and then go outside to play basketball some more.

"I could never get enough basketball. It's my passion, my desire."

She then continued her success at Purdue University, where she helped her team earn an NCAA National Championship. While at Purdue, McCarty was the National Player of the Year runner-up, as well as All-American two years, All-Big Ten four years, GTE Academic Player of the Year and All-Big Ten Academic three years. McCarty also recorded the first triple-double in Purdue history against Indiana when she scored 22 points, pulled down 11 rebounds and dished out 10 assists.

"Another highlight is definitely winning the national championship at Purdue," said McCarty. "Those things helped to show how much my hard work paid off. Not only for myself, but for my team and my community as well.

"The biggest thing I learned while playing basketball at Purdue was the value of teamwork. We were not the most talented team out there, but each of us was willing to play our role to get the job done. We played together the best as a team."

After being drafted by Charlotte in the second round of the 1999 draft, she was taken in the second round of the 2000 Expansion Draft by the Indiana Fever.

"When I was playing in Charlotte, and I heard that Indiana was going to have a WNBA team, I really wanted to play in Indiana," said McCarty. "Indiana is the basketball capital of the world. When I heard the news that I had been chosen in the expansion draft, I was both excited and relieved. Indiana is the greatest place to play basketball with the greatest fans. Now I can continue my career in front of the people who have watched my my whole life. They watched me all through high school and college, and now they can watch me at the professional level."

Now McCarty plays her role as a professional with the Indiana Fever, but it took some adjustment going from college to the pros.

"Going from college to pro is very similar to going from high school to college," said McCarty. "The biggest difference, though, is the schedule. The WNBA plays 32 games in 10 weeks. We play a lot of back-to-back games. You could play in Detroit one night and then fly to New York to play the next.

"You have to be mentally ready to play all the time. Physically, you need to really take care of yourself. There's no time to relax, if you get sick, there's no time to recover."

McCarty's role has also changed now that she is in the WNBA. She is no longer the leading scorer for her team, but her job is still important.

"I set the screens, box out and get the loose ball," said McCarty. "Those things are not on the stat sheets, but they play a big part in my team's success. Whether I score 20 points a game or five, to be able to play at the pro level is great. I just work to help my team in whatever way I can. Hopefully we can bring a WNBA championship to Indiana."

And Indiana is definitely where McCarty wants to be. She enjoys playing in the newly-built Conseco Fieldhouse, a facility different from most other professional venues.

"The fieldhouse is a lot different from other places because you do everything - work out, practice and play - in the same facility," said McCarty. "You don't have to leave for anything. When I played in Charlotte, we played in North Carolina, but we had to travel to South Caroliina to practice because that where the practice facility was.

"It's also different because it has a very 'homey' feeling. The fans are right there. In the huge arenas you don't get that feeling. I feed off the fans, and they get to feel like they are really a part of the game when they are that close."

McCarty also has some advice for girls interested in being successful basketball players.

"The biggest thing is to believe in yourself," said McCarty. "You will have to make sacrifices and work hard to be the best. You have to work harder than everyone else. You have to have confidence in yourself and be willing to put a lot of time into your dream. It takes a lot of hard work and desire and a belief in yourself and your abilities. There were a lot of things I had to sacrifice to get to where I am.

"Now I have the opportunity to play in the WNBA," said McCarty. "It's great. When I was in high school, the only way to continue my career after college would have been to play in Europe. Now, girls can dream about a career in the WNBA after college."

McCarty has also put her communications degree from Purdue to good use. In the offseason she substitute teaches but last season, McCarty wrote a column that ran in the Indianapolis Star.

"I wrote a column for Total Sports Marketing," said McCarty. "They called me and asked me to write a column. I tried to talk about more what life is like off the court. Things that my husband and I do, what we do in the cities we play in. I wanted to give an insight as to what we are like as people, not just players."