Saturday, July 10, 2010
Sardin is new Byrd girls hoops coach
varsity.roanoke.com
Timesland on Twitter
An ex-Cavalier is replacing an ex-Hokie.
Former Virginia forward Tiffany Sardin has been named the girls' basketball coach at William Byrd.
Sardin, 26, replaces former Virginia Tech guard Fran Recchia, who left after three seasons to become an assistant at Radford University.
"I actually played against her," Sardin said with a laugh Friday. "I guess I've got to outdo her, especially being a Cavalier."
It will be the first coaching job for Sardin.
"This is something I've always dreamed of doing," Sardin said of becoming a coach. "It'll be a learning experience. It'll be fun. It'll be an exciting experience as well because the players will have a lot to learn from me. I feel like I have a lot to offer.
"I'll be able to get out there and show the girls some things. Instead of just saying, I can easily show."
Recchia also was a teacher at Byrd. But Roanoke County was not able to offer a teaching position to the coaching candidates, so it needed to hire a coach who already had a full-time job inside or outside the school system. Sardin has a full-time job as a counselor for Family Service of Roanoke Valley, and will remain in that position.
Sardin played for UVa coach Debbie Ryan from 2002-06.
"She's a great model for me," Sardin said. "I'm not a yeller and Coach Ryan wasn't a yeller, so that's something we definitely have in common."
Sardin was a UVa team captain for three seasons, becoming only the second player in the program's history to be a captain that many times.
"That has prepared me a lot," she said. "I've taken on a lot of different leadership roles and I'm ready to take on this much bigger role."
The Chicago native started every game as a UVa senior, averaging 11 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds.
Sardin played professionally for two seasons in Portugal -- where she also was a captain -- before tearing her ACL. She has been with Family Service of Roanoke Valley since October 2008. She took a leave of absence last February to resume her playing career in Portugal for three months.
"I feel like I'm done," Sardin said of her playing career. "Going back over there after taking two years off, I felt a little different. I still enjoyed the game and still had the passion, but it just wasn't the same."
Sardin hopes to eventually leave Byrd to become a college coach, just as Recchia has done.
"This will open up a lot of doors for me down the line," Sardin said. "It'll kind of groom me."
