Ipswich Force's powerful player
Chris Garry | 18th June 2011| QT
AN 18-year-old girl, who earns her pay cheque flipping pancakes, is the most aggressive player on the Ipswich Force basketball team.
Do not let the easygoing nature of Lauren O'Sullivan fool you, because even if you manage to get between her and the basket – it won't be for long.
Force women's coach Brad George said despite being just 1.78m, O'Sullivan was the team's enforcer – a youngster who loved nothing more than throwing her body around in the paint.
“She's the most aggressive player we've got. She really gets in there and goes hard for the ball,” George said.
O'Sullivan, a power forward or centre, said her aggression came from necessity.
At 178cm she is 8cm shorter than the majority of power forwards and centres in the QBL.
“I'm shorter than most but bigger and stronger than most, so I have to be aggressive in there,” she said.
“I'm not a dirty player.
“I don't throw elbows or anything like that.
“But because I'm shorter I have to use my weight and be aggressive when I'm boxing out and things like that otherwise the taller players will just reach over me.”
In her rookie season, O'Sullivan has received limited bench minutes for the Force, averaging 3.3 points per game.
But as the youngest on the team, she is expected to get increased time as the year progresses.
O'Sullivan represented Queensland at the U17 national titles two years ago and was named a shadow player for Australia.
She said the selection made her realise she should take the sport more seriously.
“I've played since I was a kid but never took it seriously or tried for rep teams,” O'Sullivan said.
“Making the Queensland team made me realise I could be a good basketball player and in the last two years I've taken it more seriously. It's hard with uni and work to find time but I try and dedicate as much time to it as I can.”
O'Sullivan has to juggle basketball with a sports science degree and her job at Ipswich's Pancake Manor.
She said after just one week in the job her love for the dessert disappeared.
“I can't stand pancakes any more,” she said.
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