FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University women’s basketball redshirt-senior Heather Tobeck/La Porte, Texas has been named this week’s Longwood Female Athlete of the Week. Tobeck propelled the Lancers to a historic win at Xavier University of the BIG EAST Conference on Nov. 21. Tobeck, who notched a career-high 15 rebounds in that outing, in addition to 13 points for her first double-double of the year, drained the go-ahead three-point field goal in the final seconds of the 67-64 victory. In the squad’s most recent outing at George Mason on Nov. 26, the forward hit a personal-best nine field goals for a career-high 21 points.
Question and Answer Session with Heather Tobeck and Ashley Robbins
AR: Talk about helping to lead the team in a historic victory at Xavier.
HT: I think we played really well during that entire game. We made a run, you know, basketball is a game of runs. Then they made a run. Coach Reinson drew up a play at the end of the game and told me I needed to get shot and I hit it. There was a game in the previous year that the same thing happened and I missed the shot, so it was great to hit it.
AR: What does a win like that mean for the program?
HT: It means a lot. I’m the only one who’s been here for three or four years now and we’ve never won a game like that. It’s really exciting to win a game like that.
AR: How do you think these early season games are preparing the team heading into the Big South?
HT: I think it’s boosting our confidence a little, which is good. I don’t know how it feels to play in conference because I wasn’t here last year, but I think these games are going to help us win the Big South.
AR: What are your individual and team goals for the rest of the season?
HT: My individual goal is to help the team win, whatever I have to do to help us win. I just want to make history, so whatever I have to do is what I’ll do. Our team goal is definitely to win the Big South Championship.
AR: Do you have any pregame rituals or superstitions?
HT: Not really, I just listen to music and get focused.
AR: Why did you choose Longwood?
HT: Well, I’m from Texas and another school recruited me from Houston that was basically just like Longwood, except at home. For me, it was a choice of whether I wanted to stay home or go away. I wanted to get away and be a grown up.
AR: What do you think is the best thing about your team this year?
HT: We have a lot of heart. When you win games by three points, that’s what wins the game is the heart. I think that’s our biggest asset, how much we want to win.
AR: Do you have any plans following graduation?
HT: I’m an exercise science major, but I would like to be a coach somewhere. I might stay here in Virginia or I might go back to Texas, it just depends.
AR: If you could switch places with a teammate for a day, who would it be?
HT: I would say Daeisha (Brown) because I would like to feel what it’s like to be short and fast.
AR: What would you say is one of the best pieces of advice you’ve gotten in your career?
HT: Coach Reinson always tells me I’m a grown woman now. When I was a freshman, I played like a little girl and now I’m a grown woman, so I need to play like that. That’s what helped me with the last game I think. I realized I’m so much older than everyone else, I need to dominate out there.
AR: If you could give advice to a young athlete, what would it be?
HT: Keep your head straight and don’t waste your time. It’s so much more fun when you’re doing what you’re supposed to and doing your best.
