Butterfingers
The following is an excerpt from "Mad About U: Four Decades of Basketball at University Hall," by Chris Graham and Patrick Hite. Discounts are available for a limited time. Click on the link above for details.
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As a high-school player, Heather Burge (now Heather Quella) had dreamed of catching a pass from Dawn Staley. That was one of the reasons she and her sister committed to UVa. But dreaming of it and actually living it are two different things. The description Heather used for both Heidi and her that freshman season was “butterfingers.” For anyone who has seen a Dawn Staley pass, they know butterfingers is one thing you shouldn’t be when on the receiving end.
“Coming from high school, we had never had passes like this,” Quella said. “They were super rockets. She would jump, turn and pass it, and we weren’t ready. She got so frustrated because her turnovers kept going up because we kept dropping the ball. After her getting upset a few times and us feeling guilty, we started getting our hands up earlier.”
Quella said playing with Staley offered her a great opportunity for growth as a player, giving her every chance to succeed on the court.
“She was always super humble,” Quella said. “One of the best women’s players I’ve ever seen. By far the best passer in the world.”
After that freshman year, and after dropping countless bullet passes, the twins learned to expect a pass from Staley at any time, in any situation. But the first year playing with Staley was a learning experience for everyone.
“She had to learn patience, and we had to learn to get our hands up earlier, or else it was going to go right through our fingers,” Quella said. “We had a lot of blood, sweat and tears over that.”

"Mad About U: Four Decades of Basketball at University Hall" will be released Oct. 5, but for a limited time you can save $10 off the cover price by pre-ordering. Visit www.madaboutu.net for all of the details.