Gazette-Times reporter

The endless view of flyover country from the airplane window on Judie Lomax’s recruiting trip to Oregon State vividly illustrated just how far Corvallis was from her hometown of Potomac, Md.

“I remember waking up at 3 in the morning to go to the airport, and when we finally got to Oregon we had to drive from Portland,” to reach campus, OSU’s freshman forward said Monday in recalling the journey she and her aunt made last year to check out a school she’d never considered attending.

Assistant Patrick Harrington chauffeured them from PDX. As they traversed miles and miles of Willamette Valley farmland, Lomax’s aunt began wondering what they’d gotten into by accepting coach LaVonda Wagner’s intriguing invitation.

“It was a reality check, just how far it was,” from Potomac, Lomax said. “My aunt was saying, ‘Are you sure this is what you want to do?’ She wanted me to be objective because it was a big decision.”

Finally, Harrington stopped outside of Gill Coliseum. Lomax stepped out of the car, and had an immediate moment of clarity.

“The crazy thing was, I felt I was at home, even though I had traveled so long to get here,” she said. “The players and environment were great. I met academic people, the Honors College people, the athletic director ... they all seemed so willing to help and it seemed like a community where I could fit right in.

“My family was raised to be very independent, so I didn’t think it was that big of a deal coming all the way to Oregon. No regrets at all.”

Lomax has reciprocated that instant impact. Heading into tonight’s 7 o’clock home game with USC (13-8, 7-4), she leads OSU (8-11, 3-7) in rebounding (8.3 rpg), is second in scoring (11.3 ppg) and has shown no quarter against opponents far taller than her generously-listed 5-foot-11.

“It’s about pride. You can’t be intimidated by anything,” Lomax said. “I’d be cheating myself and my teammates if I didn’t work as hard as I possibly could.

“(Lack of) height can be a crutch, but I’ve decided I won’t let it be. That would hold me back from being what I want to be. Heart and hustle are things everyone can control, no matter their height or ability.”

Wagner holds rebounders in high regard. Rebounds equal baskets in her evaluation system, and championships are impossible without them.

“Points will come,” Wagner said. “Judie knows we rely on her for her rebounding, which she has to do to get us rolling. She’s playing that role well.”

Harrington taught her that rebounding starts well before the shot. Smaller players must “do the dirty work early,” so her solid frame is perfect to muscle opponents from their favorite spots, maintain position, and box out.

“She’s aggressive, she’s strong, she’s built amazingly,” forward Casey Bunn said. “She knows we need her to rebound, they’re just as good as points or anything. We value that, she understands that.”

Lomax had long wanted to head west for college, even though she’d never been closer to the Pacific Ocean than an AAU tournament in Utah. But her West Coast options had disappeared when Wagner acted on a tip from Monique Curry, a former Duke star who was Lomax’s AAU coach.

“I had narrowed it down to Ivy League schools,” Lomax said. “But I just had a bigger vision. I wanted to be well-rounded.

“Basketball here is definitely an opportunity to grow. Coach Wagner said coming here would prepare me for life. The Ivy League would give me the education to go out into the real world, but I wanted to be mature enough to grow up and have discipline, values, to be accountable and respectful,” hallmarks of Wagner’s big-picture approach to intercollegiate athletics.

Wagner calls Lomax a winner who just needed the right academic fit at OSU because she was already sold on everything else.

“We found a way to go back to The Bullis School and say, ‘I’m not going to Yale or Columbia, but I am going to graduate from the Oregon State Honors College.’

“That put some validity on her academics here.”