 "Photo: Meg Loucks")
While in seventh-grade, Erika Arriaran had more to worry about than teenage crushes and pop quizzes.
At 13-years-old, Arriaran (pronounced "Ah-REAR-err-rahn") was already worrying about which college she would commit to.
Arriaran, now a freshman guard for the Longhorns, became the youngest player ever invited to the Blue Star Elite Summer Camp following her fifth-grade year. Comprised mostly of high school players, Arriaran was able to step in and compete against girls five-to-six years older while grabbing the attention of many collegiate programs in the process.
And the program to show the most interest from the beginning was Texas.
"They started noticing me in seventh-grade, and they sent me a letter that I responded to right away," Arriaran said.
But the early letter wasn't the only reason she chose to attend Texas. Citing an affinity for the local atmosphere, Arriaran arrived for her visit and immediately felt like it was the place for her.
Along with the good vibrations the Norco, Calif., native was picking up from the 40 Acres, Arriaran also enjoyed the top-notch basketball facilities and her soon-to-be head coach.
"I really liked Coach [Jody] Conradt, and she was my first choice of coaches," Arriaran said.
And Arriaran was a first-choice for Texas head coach Conradt as well.
"We saw her at a young age, and we wanted to let her know we were interested," Conradt said. "She brings leadership to the lineup despite her age, and we knew she was special from the beginning."
The biggest piece to the puzzle was Texas' invitation to their summer camp, according to associate head coach and recruiting coordinator Karen Aston.
"We saw her at a really young age and followed up through the years with her coach," Aston said. "Through her coach, we sent a camp invitation, and she came to the camp before her freshman year of high school. That was the huge selling point for her as a younger player because it made a positive impression on her that she never forgot."
But it wasn't always a Cinderella story for Arriaran.
At the age of 4, Arriaran was diagnosed with a severe case of asthma, and the medicine she was taking for it caused acute drowsiness.
Arriaran's doctors told her parents that she needed do something that would make her more active during the day. In turn, her grandfather bought her a Playskool basketball court; every day her father would come home from work, and they would play one-on-one in the house.
Little did anyone know that the Playskool gym would be a big step in helping Arriaran transform into a Parade and State Farm/WBCA National High School Player of the Year and No. 1 recruit in 2004-05.
All of this while only playing three years of high school basketball.
As a sophomore (2002-03), Arriaran was home-schooled while also taking college-level courses so that she could focus more on her basketball team her senior year. Arriaran did not want the workload of high school classes conflicting with her college choices.
But don't think that Arriaran didn't stay in basketball shape in her year-long absence from high school play.
"I was playing in so many women's leagues and a few men's leagues," Arriaran said. "I probably went down to Los Angeles four times a week and played with a bunch of my guy friends in pickup games."
After Arriaran graduated as one of the most decorated high school players in the nation, she was chosen for the Under-19 World Championship Team helping 8-0 USA win the gold medal at the FIBA World Championships in Tunis, Tunisia.
Because Arriaran played with the USA team in the summer, she was the last freshman to arrive at Texas from the heralded No. 1 recruiting class in the nation.
But the late arrival was no detriment to Arriaran's performance on the court.
"I think USA took total advantage of preparing me for college basketball," Arriaran said. "You learn discipline, and you don't have a minute to slack off. That's exactly what helped prepare me for this."
And Arriaran is not the only one that saw how much preparation USA basketball provided.
"There is a huge learning curve with freshman, and USA helped her with the expectations and the amount of practice involved," Aston said. "The preparations can be shocking to some freshman, and she's made a good adjustment."
The adjustment is apparent.
Through 14 games this season, Arriaran averages 30.6 minutes per game, second on the team behind junior All-American Tiffany Jackson and is also second in scoring average at 11.1 points per game.
"There wasn't any question that she would come right in and make an impact on our team, and she probably doesn't think she's made as much of an impact as she has," Aston said. "I'm sure she wishes she could do more and expects herself to do more, but she's doing a good job on the court for our team."
Her numbers and sound play on the court reflect her observational skills off the court. Arriaran is able to pick through defenses because of the amount of time she studies her opponent.
"She's a great observer and pays attention to everything in the scouting reports and on the film," Aston said. "Part of the learning curve with freshman is learning to pay attention to detail, and she's got that part down right now."
Arriaran will be able to put those observational skills to the test on Sunday, when the Longhorns square off against Kansas State at 2 p.m. in the Frank Erwin Center.
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