Adrienne Tarver is one of those rare people who can't quite find enough hours in the day to satisfy a personal quest for excellence.

The Park rising senior took piano lessons for five years, which fueled a love of classical music.

Still, she stopped taking lessons as a freshman in order to have more time for sports.

"To be honest if I weren't doing sports, I would probably be playing the piano more," said Tarver, who also tutors and mentors younger students while maintaining an A average.

Although she still plays the piano every day to relax, the sacrifice of not having a more regimented musical schedule paid off for the Bruins' basketball, soccer and lacrosse squads.

Her signature sport, though, is lacrosse, considering she is one of only nine Baltimore-area players named a US Lacrosse All-American after racking up 68 goals and 32 assists for the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland B Conference champs.

Tarver verbally committed to play the sport at Yale University, where she's leaning toward majoring in architecture or psychology.

The 5-foot-5 midfielder chose the Ivy League School over five-time defending national champion Northwestern University and Atlantic Coast Conference power Duke University.

"(Yale lacrosse coach Anne Phillips) wants to build her program around athletes like Adrienne," Park girls lacrosse coach Robin Cardin Lowe said. "(With) kids who are committed to the sport and play with the kind of passion that she does."

Cardin Lowe is used to having accomplished players, although Tarver is an exception.

"This is my first year of putting someone up for All-American (in 13 years) because I think she is that special of an athlete," Cardin Lowe added.

The three-year starter has racked up 138 goals and 64 assists in her career.

"She has the whole package," Cardin Lowe said. "She plays really physically, has the passing skills, raw athleticism, stickwork and speed."

Of her three years on the Park varsity, Tarver stood out the most this past spring for the 15-2 Bruins.

In May, she helped Park beat heated rival Friends, 12-11, by scoring two goals and adding an assist in the conference final.

Tarver also had standout performances in two regular season losses to Friends, totaling five goals and two assists in a 17-16 overtime verdict and scoring twice in a 15-14 decision.

"If we didn't have Adrienne, we are not even in those games," Cardin Lowe said.

Besides having an accurate shot, Tarver finds the back of the net so often because of her ability to simply run away from defenders.

"Her speed is amazing," Park assistant coach Jane McGough said. "There is no one as fast as her in the B Conference. When Adrienne turns on the after burners, no one can compete with her."

Tarver, who has been playing lacrosse year-round for five years and eight years overall, also sharpens her skills playing for the Towson-based TLC club team.

In addition, she's a three-year soccer starter and started the last two years for the basketball squad.

With all that going for her, Tarver still finds time to attend field trips and do math tutoring with inner-city elementary school students.

In separate mentoring programs, Tarver spends time and sometimes attends reading classes with a fourth grader and also teaches life skills to sixth graders.

"I like to deal with the students," Tarver said. "I think we help them, but they also help us to learn about different kinds of people in other environments."

Tarver also finds time to participate in Park clubs, such as the Habitat for Humanity, Broadening the Conversation for Race and the Committee for Student Support.

She even likes to draw in her spare time, taking a class at the Maryland Institute of College Art this summer.

When that dichotomy between artist and athlete surfaces, it can take even one of Tarver's biggest fans off guard.

"I didn't even know she played the piano until were on a retreat for one of her mentoring classes (in 2007)," Cardin Lowe said. "I was taken aback. I just thought it was an amazing performance."

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