Girls’ Player of the Week : After a Long Wait, Youngs Quickly Ends All the Doubts

On Dec. 19, Elaine Youngs of El Toro High School went up for a jump shot against Marina in the Savanna tournament final. When she came down, it was the beginning of more than a month of pain and frustration.

Youngs injured her ankle in the fourth quarter of that game, but it was not until later that bone chips were discovered.

“At first, the doctor said it was a sprained ankle and that I would be out about a week,” Youngs said. “But it just didn’t get better. I had a sharp pain in my ankle that wouldn’t go away.”

When the second X-ray examination four weeks later revealed the bone chips, Youngs was relieved.

“Every week, they kept telling that I’d be back in one more week,” Youngs said. “It got to the point where I didn’t know when it would heal.”

Youngs underwent arthroscopic surgery Feb. 10 and last Wednesday returned to the lineup for the first time in two months. It was quite a return.

Against Alemany in the second round of the Southern Section 3-A playoffs, Youngs--The Times’ player of the week--scored 35 points and had 15 rebounds to lead the Chargers to a 66-54 victory. Next was a 15-point performance in a 47-32 quarterfinal victory over Valencia.

“Talk about making a statement that you were back,” El Toro Coach Greg Yeck said.

“I was pretty sure we could get through the first round of the playoffs, but we were going to need her to go any further,” Yeck said. “But we weren’t sure if she’d be back this season.”

Yeck, too, was as baffled about the injury as Youngs. After the first week, he began thinking that she was worrying too much about re-injuring the ankle.

“I always thought of Elaine as indestructible,” Yeck said. “It was a shock to me to see her unable to play. After the first week, we felt it might be a psychological thing.”

Some of Youngs’ classmates were not as kind.

“There were some people who said that I didn’t have the desire to play,” said Youngs, who will play volleyball at UCLA next fall. “That made me want to get back even more.”

Youngs began therapy three days after the surgery with the idea of returning before the season ened.

“I was just happy to finally know what was wrong.”

Elaine Youngs

El Toro High School

Position: Center

Height, Class: 6-0, Sr.

Last Week: Youngs scored 50 points in two games, as El Toro advanced to the semifinals of the Southern Section 3-A playoffs.

Season: Youngs missed most of the season with an ankle injury.