Ready to Take Her Shot : Ventura College’s Hardy Can Score From All Points

Julie Hardy plays basketball in oversized shorts that practically touch her knees. Sometimes it looks like they’re going to drop because she jumps up and down so intensely during games.

She raises her arms and shakes her long, curly hair wildly as she yells to Ventura College teammates. It’s a constant effort to alert them that she’s open and wants the ball.

“Here! Here! Over here! Me,” she calls.

Hardy, a sophomore, wants the ball because she feels confident that on most occasions she will make a shot.

She asks for it while standing under the rim, inside the key, from the perimeter and from three-point range. And usually, when the 5-foot-11 forward/guard gets it, she scores with seemingly little effort.

“She can put points up in bunches and she can score from anywhere on the floor,” Ventura Coach Ned Mircetic said. “When you have a kid like that who can score from under the basket and also out on the floor it’s worth a million dollars. Kids with that kind of ability are rare at this level.”

And even at the next level.

Scoring ability is the main reason Hardy, a Buena High graduate, was recruited by Division I schools such as Arizona and Oregon.

She committed to San Luis Obispo, which moved from Division II to Division I this season, during the early period in October because she wanted to stay close to home.

“I can’t tell you how excited we are to get her,” said Laurie Decker, the San Luis Obispo assistant coach in charge of recruiting. “Julie Hardy is the type of player that can take this program to another level. I was impressed with her flat-out pure scoring ability. She could score from wherever she wants to score.”

In a recent tournament at Valley College, Hardy had a game-high 20 points in a victory over Citrus. Two days later in the championship game, she scored 20 points in a victory over Valley. For the second year in a row, Hardy led her team to the championship and was selected the tournament’s most valuable player.

“She’s just a really good player who cannot only shoot but handles the ball very well, too,” Valley Coach John Taylor said. “It’s really nice to watch her play. There are few things she can’t do.”

Hardy, 19, was the only area woman picked to the All-State team. She averaged 21.6 points and 9.6 rebounds a game and led the Pirates to the playoffs and a 26-6 record.

This season, Hardy is averaging a team-best 17 points and 6.6 rebounds for Ventura (10-1), which is ranked No. 3 in the state. The Pirates’ only loss was against top-ranked and defending state champion Harbor College in an early season tournament.

Ventura has defeated highly regarded teams such as Golden West and College of the Sequoias.

“This team has four or five players that can score 20 points a night,” Hardy said. “Last season we didn’t have any scorers so this is nice because it takes pressure off me. Other teams can’t afford to double- and triple-team me like they did when I was a freshman.”

As a youth, Hardy never imagined she’d end up playing basketball. She says soccer is her first love. She grew up playing the game and planned to compete in it through college.

But when she made the varsity soccer team and the junior varsity basketball team as a freshman at Buena, she was forced to choose.

“My mother said to go for basketball,” Hardy said. “She said the crowds are better and I wouldn’t have to deal with the weather. So I took her advice and here I am.”

Any regrets?

“None. I absolutely love basketball now.”

Hardy also played varsity softball as a sophomore at Buena. She was the school’s starting first baseman and clean-up hitter, but quit midway through the season, citing personality differences with the coach.

That left her with energy and attention to focus on basketball. As a senior, Hardy averaged 13 points and was All-Channel League and All-Southern Section. She helped lead the Bulldogs to a 25-3 record and the Division I-A championship.

“We had a great team that year, but Julie was definitely one of our top three players,” Buena Coach Joe Vaughan said. “She ran the floor very well and she was extremely quick for her size.”

Vaughan said Hardy was not heavily recruited by four-year colleges because she needed to develop physically. She graduated at 17 and didn’t turn 18 until September.

“She shouldn’t have graduated that year,” he said. “She was a year younger than most players.

“Now you could see that she’s stronger from a physical standpoint because she’s had a chance to mature.”

Hardy feels the difference and the power. She’s more confident as a result, but points out that even as a young, undeveloped player she was intense.

And she always wanted the ball.