Living up to expectations
By Thomas Gase tgase@theacorn.com

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers CALL FOR THE BALL- Moorpark High senior Lauren Carter establishes position down in the block during Wednesday night's victory over Thousand Oaks. MHS is tied for third in league.

No matter what position Lauren Carter has played on the basketball court, she's been a dominant force.

The 17-year-old Moorpark High senior has spent time at small forward, power forward and center for the Musketeers in her four-year varsity career.

Prior to Wednesday night's win over Thousand Oaks High, Carter was leading MHS in points (17.3) and rebounds per game (11.2).

"Players that are very versatile like Lauren is what make them so good," said Adam Wohlstattar, Moorpark's former girls' head coach who now coaches the boys' team. "The fact that she can play so many positions makes it tough for opponents to scout her and prepare to guard her."

Dave Murphy had seen Carter play while he coached at Simi Valley High, but when he took over at Moorpark, he was surprised to see just how good Carter was away from the basket.

"She's a very good ball handler for a tall girl," Murphy said. "She's a powerful inside player, but she also shoots close to 40 percent from outside the paint."

Carter first started playing basketball when she was 5 years old after watching her dad and her brother play. Lauren's brother, Andrew, played for MHS.

"I liked basketball because it was something to do that was very competitive and very fun at the same time," she said.

Carter started to realize that the game might be her calling when she was 10, when numerous coaches and players on other club teams kept telling her she was talented.

Although Carter was hearing the compliments, she was still surprised when she not only made the varsity team as a freshman, but became a starter as well.

"I was shocked," Carter said. "I thought, 'Oh, this is great. I actually made the team.' Then Wohlstattar told me I'd be starting, and I became very nervous. By the end of my freshman season I started to get used to the pace of the game, and by my sophomore year I had a real feel for the level of competition."

Although it's not every day a freshman starts on the varsity squad, Wohlstattar said there was no doubt he was going to play Carter in her first year at MHS.

"I looked at her and said to myself that this girl was going to dominate the Marmonte League by her junior year," Wohlstattar said. "By the time she's a senior, she's going to dominate Ventura County. And if you look at her numbers, that's exactly what she's done. She's averaging a doubledouble this season."

Carter said she practiced extremely hard during the offseason to improve her game.

"I worked a lot on my ballhandling skills and going to my right," Carter said. "I was also struggling with my free-throw shooting, so I worked on that."

Carter's dedication paid off in a game earlier this season against Calabasas High, when the senior made 22 free throws en route to a season-high 31 points. Carter also grabbed 21 rebounds in the contest.

With Carter excelling on the court, college recruiters came calling. A month ago, Carter accepted a scholarship offer to attend Cal State Bakersfield next fall.

Bakersfield "told me I was their No. 1 recruit, and that made me feel good," Carter said. "I went on my official visit, and when I was there I really loved the team, the coach and the campus."

She doesn't know what her major in college will be, though she did say she wanted to do something that helps people.

Right now, Carter's trying to help the Musketeers win a Marmonte League title. MHS is currently tied for third place behind Royal and Newbury Park.

"This season has been a big one for me," Carter said. "The team is a lot closer, and we're all really good friends. I've been blessed to have a lot of ability on the basketball court. When I finish my career at Moorpark it won't be an ending, but rather the beginning of a new stage in my life."