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Vital begins her sophomore season at Cal after being tabbed to the first-team Pac-10 All-Freshman squad and earning a tryout with the U.S. Under-19 National team...quick, very athletic, a great passer and understands the game...has become more vocal and a better floor leader since being thrust into big minutes as a starter for the final 23 games of the year...looks to get her teammates involved first...loves the transition game and brings quickness to the Bears' backcourt...interchangeable at the one or two positions because she has a great feel for the game and can score...capable of scoring off penetration and possesses three-point range and a pull-up jumper...terrific ballhandler...helped the San Francisco team win the 2007 San Francisco Pro Am summer league.
As a freshman in 2006-07:Emerged as Cal's starting point guard after Alexis Gray-Lawson suffered a season-ending knee injury nine games into the season...named the Bears' Most Improved Player...played in all 32 games and proved quite capable as the starter...selected to the Pac-10 All-Freshman team...went from averaging 18.4 mpg as a reserve to leading all Pac-10 players in minutes played in conference games at 39.39 mpg...played at least 40 minutes 13 times, including a career-high 49 minutes in a double OT win at Oregon State and every minute of the team's last five games...averaged 7.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg and 4.0 apg (T4th Pac-10) overall but as a starter, averaged 8.6 ppg, 2.9 rpg and 5.0 rpg...in Pac-10 games, averaged 8.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg and 5.4 apg (2nd Pac-10)...ranked 10th in the Pac-10 in all games in assist/TO ratio (1.12)...recorded double-doubles in home triumphs over USC (15 points, career-high 10 assists) and UCLA (18 points, career-high 10 assists) the final week of Pac-10 play...owned nine double-digit scoring games, including eight over the last 15 games...in Cal's 72-57 win over No. 8 Stanford, posted a career-high 19 points and added six rebounds, six assists and a career-high three steals...dished off at least six assists seven times, including nine at home against Washington...tallied five assists vs. Notre Dame in NCAAs...her 128 assists were the most by a Cal player since Eliza Sokolowska accumulated 186 in 1995-96...steady at the foul line at 74.4 percent, highlighted by a 10-of-12 effort in the upset of Stanford...averaged 15.3 points per game playing in the 2006 San Francisco Pro Am summer league.
High School: As a senior at Lincoln High School, averaged 21 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals per game to earn a No. 55 national ranking by Blue Star Index and the No. 5 spot on the NorCal Girls' Top 40 list for 2006...scored 20 or more points in nine games as a senior...earned an assortment of honors - Street & Smith's honorable mention All-America, league and team MVP, first-team all-area and All-San Joaquin Athletic Association...averaged 14.1 points, 5.3 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game as a junior...helped her team to the second round of the playoffs in 2006 and a 19-7 overall record, the third round in 2005 and the first round in 2003 and 2004...as a member of the track and field team, participated in the high jump, 100m and relays...also was a member of her school's tennis team...won third place at nationals with her AAU basketball team, the East Bay Xplosion...four-year member of the honor roll.
Personal: Natasha Annette Vital was born June 9, 1988, in Oakland, Calif....parents are Roy Vital, Sr., and Carol Moland...has four siblings, Roy, Jamilia, Brandy and Jeremiah...her brother, Roy, played football at Southern...interests include listening to music, writing and poetry...undeclared major but interested in psychology.
VITAL'S CAREER STATISTICS Year G-Gs Min Fg-a Pct 3p-a Pct Ft-a Pct Reb Avg Pf-D Ast To Blk St Tp Avg 06-07 32-23 1058-33.1 77-192 .401 16-63 .254 61-82 .744 85 2.7 81-2 128 114 3 33 231 7.2
