LaPorte's Beckman connection extends to big ND-Utah game

By Chris Schable
The LaPorte Herald-Argus

When Lauren Beckman dons her University of Utah uniform to face Notre Dame in the Sweet 16 game of the women's NCAA Tournament Saturday, the summer she spent last year in LaPorte will be fresh in her mind.
Beckman, whose parents moved to LaPorte shortly after she graduated from Elko High School in Nevada two years ago, spent her summer listening to how good the Irish would be this season. She saw the predictions of a Big East and possible national title on the news, she read it in the papers, she even heard talk of the Irish's certain success while playing basketball at the LaPorte YMCA.
When the 6-2 forward/center takes the floor against arguably the nation's top player in 6-4 Ruth Riley and the favored Irish in Denver, she'll get her chance to prove that she and the Utes are not too bad themselves.
"That's all I heard last summer was how good Notre Dame was going to be," said Beckman. "It's been motivation for me because I know we can compete at that level. To beat them after all this buildup would be a huge win for our program."
Beckman's younger sister Katie, a junior standout member of the LaPorte basketball team, heard the talk as well, but like Lauren, Katie feels that an upset over Notre Dame would provide the Utes with the recognition they deserve.
"I'm happy for her because I know how hard she and her teammates have worked to get to this level," said Katie. "I've always rooted for Notre Dame, but not this time. I want Lauren to get the recognition she deserves."
If Beckman expects to earn that recognition, she's going to have to contain Riley, something no one has done thus far this season.
"She's a great player, there's no doubt," said Beckman. "If we shut her down or even slow her down, it's not going to be just me. It's going to have to be a team defensive effort."
Beckman has already made her mark on the state of Nevada. She was named to the state's 4A All-State team in both her junior and senior years, was twice an honorable-mention USA Today All-American, and was the 1997 Nevada Gatorade Player of the Year (comparable to Indiana's Ms. Basketball honor).She was also an excellent student in the classroom. She was named to the National Honor Society and was her graduating class' salutatorian.
At Utah, Beckman was named to the Western Athletic Conference All-Newcomer Team, averaging 9.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and a conference-best 1.8 blocks per game her freshman year.
Beckman averaged 10.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg, and was named to the All-MWC second team her sophomore season. As a junior, she has worked her way into the upper echelon of centers in the country, averaging team highs in points (12.6), rebounds (7.5) and blocks (1.6). She was named to the Mountain West All-Conference first team.