Then there is Tiffany Briscoe.
Watching the Coupeville High School girls basketball team this season, the strengths of the players in the starting lineup were obvious. Kailey Kellner was the sharpshooter, Mia Littlejohn was the ball handler, Lauren Grove was the lockdown defender and Lindsey Roberts was the top rebounder.
Briscoe, the fifth starter, did a little bit of everything. To call her a Jill of all trades and a master of none, however, would be a disservice. She was indispensable.
Briscoe plays three sports — basketball, volleyball and softball — and fills whatever job is necessary for the team to win.
You won’t find her on any all-conference lists, but she is all-state in heart and selflessness.
Most teams have an all-league player or two, but it is often how the other athletes in the lineup perform that determines if a team is successful.
That is were Briscoe comes in. She is a role player, and she does her job well. So well, in fact, Briscoe helped the Wolves win the Olympic League volleyball and basketball titles this school year. Now she is prepping to do the same with the softball squad.
“I do whatever the coaches need for that team, that sport, that year,” she said.
Volleyball coach Cory Whitmore and basketball coach David King both said Briscoe is the kind of player every coach appreciates and wants on his team.
“She is an incredibly selfless players, always willing to put the team’s needs ahead of her own,” Whitmore said.
“She may not be the star, but what she does is play for the team and the glory that comes with that,” King said. “Not once in the four years coaching her in basketball or the one year in softball has she ever put personal stats or glory over the team. I guess in that sense, she is a star.”
“Tiffany will give 100 percent whenever she is on the field, whether it is practice or a game,” softball coach Kevin McGranahan said. “She is a solid performer who doesn’t seek out the spotlight but definitely helps the team with her attitude and hustle.”
Briscoe enjoys all three sports but said volleyball has always been her passion.
“It is the sport I feel most secure,” she said. “I love the thrill and adrenalin when I get out there on the court.”
Basketball, she said, is special because of the family atmosphere the coaching staff, King and his wife Amy, has developed.
“Everyone has gotten closer this year; everyone is willing to sacrifice,” she said.
Softball is her newest sport. King, the coach at the time, persuaded Briscoe to give it a try when she was a freshman.
Now she can’t imagine not playing three sports.
“My mom says the more time I am occupied in sports, the less time I have to get into trouble,” Briscoe said.
Her parents, Richard and Amy Briscoe, signed her up for youth soccer years ago and she has been involved in sports ever since.
Amy Briscoe is Tiffany’s most ardent supporter.
“I wouldn’t be here playing sports without her,” Tiffany said.
Briscoe also gets to share her athletic career with her sister, junior Kyla, who plays the same three sports.
“It’s so special to get to play with her,” Tiffany Briscoe said. “She’s been hurt during volleyball and basketball, so I am glad I get to play with her in softball.”
Briscoe said her greatest strengths are being a vocal leader and an ambassador.
“My teammates look to me when we are in a hard spot,” she said. “They want me to tell them it will be OK.”
During the school year, she recruits freshmen, encouraging them to get involved in athletics.
“I want to get the girls into the program, to get them to be part of the family,” she said.
Whitmore reinforced those remarks: “As a teammate, she is incredibly caring and an emotional leader, especially to younger players looking to her for guidance. Tiffany is an incredibly hard worker, with a big heart.
“I am so proud to have coached her and look forward to seeing where her strong character will take her in life.”
Upon graduation, Briscoe hopes to attend Ohio State University and become a veterinarian.
“I lived on a farm my whole life and I love animals,” she said. “Their home has always been my home. We have a pig in our home right now.”
For the time being, there is a softball season to play and another role to fill.
“We need more people like Tiffany in the world, putting others first,” King said. “She’ll do whatever it takes to help the team.
Senior Tiffany Briscoe provided a veteran presence on the league-leading Coupeville volleyball team. (Photo by John Fisken)
