NCAA Regional Pre-Match News Conferences
December 06, 2007 | Volleyball
The University of Wisconsin is hosting an NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Regional on Friday-Saturday in the UW Field House.
In preparation for the tournament, all four teams participated in pre-match news conferences on Thursday in the Field House media room.
Complete transcriptions of the news conference follows below. A video archive of the news conferences can be found by clicking on the Audio/Video link to the right.
IOWA STATE
Opening Statement from Coach Christy Johnson: Obviously, thrilled to be here. It's been, I think the word I would use is magical; it's been a magical couple of weeks. To think that just two weeks ago, was it just two weeks ago we were playing Kansas, about to be eliminated. You're looking at being eliminated even from the chance to come to the NCAA tournament. To go from that to beating some ranked opponents and now advancing to the Sweet 16, I just can 't think of another word or a better word to use than magical.
I think we're continuing to play well. We've had a great week of practice. We understand that we've got a tough road ahead of us. We know how good Cal is. We know how good Michigan State and Nebraska are. I think we all understand we 've got another tough, tough weekend ahead of us.
But I think we are playing well. We've had a nice travel schedule. We're very happy to be back in Madison, for a lot of reasons ' the great venue and the fans. But the fact that we can just get on a bus and drive four (to) four-and-a-half hours back here is really nice for us.
So we are happy to be here, we're excited about the weekend and I feel good about how we're playing right now.
Christy, how did your team turn the tide on what has happened since Kansas'
JOHNSON: I really wish I knew that, because I would remember it for next year. But I would say, I think against Kansas, we were pretty tense. We knew we had some must wins and I think sometimes when you have must wins you tend to tense up and play with a little bit of fear. Really since that match, the pressure has been off us. We didn't have any more must wins. We had some it would be nice to get this win and I think that's how we've been playing lately.
We have been very relaxed. We learned a lot against our loss vs. Texas. We learned how to be relaxed in crunch times and at the end of matches and I think that's really come through for us for the last few big matches we've had. I think it's just kind of learning to relax and enjoy the game and not playing with fear, but just playing, enjoying it and playing to win.
Christy, how much, and for maybe a player or two as well, the familiarity with Madison, Wisconsin, now that the Badgers aren 't in it, is that a huge advantage for you guys, having been here last year and now back for the regional after the first and second round'
JOHNSON: I think, we're very comfortable here and we talked about that this week. We are more comfortable here than any other team this weekend, just because of how many times we've been up here in the last year, so that's obviously a bonus for us. Again, it's really nice to just get on a bus and come. I like not having to fly halfway across the country or not having to spend a lot of time traveling. It's nice to just be able to get here, have your family and friends be able to come here and watch you play in the Midwest.
ERIN BOEVE: I think also adding to that, it 's even a lot more comfortable playing this year than it was last year in the NCAA tournament. And so I think coming in here and just being more relaxed and I think also, since Wisconsin is out of the tournament now, not playing somebody on their home court is an advantage for us. So I think just coming in and playing two completely different teams will help us this weekend.
Erin and Lauren, could you just tell us a little bit about what was different when Christy and her staff took over. What were the changes they made attitudinally or what were sort of changes went on '
BOEVE: Freshmen year, I was with the old coaches and then Christy came in. I guess, really we had some talent on the team, but I would say she made us work hard and get our talents and abilities out of us, because I think we didn 't know exactly what we could do, especially in the Big 12. And I just feel like she just got our abilities out of us and her coaching style along with her staff.
LAUREN CUMMINGS: I never had experience with the old coaches, transferring in, but I think we just have three great coaches. They each bring something different, different aspect to the court. I think they're probably three of the best coaches that I've ever played for and I'm really grateful to have them.
This is for the players, seeing that you're the most experienced at it, you say Nebraska, what comes to mind '
KAYLEE MANNS: It's hard to beat a team three times. That's what came to my mind.
CUMMINGS: They're definitely a great volleyball program. (This) past season, I know we've lost to them twice, but I keep thinking if we do play them, they beat Michigan State, third time is maybe the charm. So I think we'll definitely have to come out tense and be ready to play, but I think we have a good shot at taking them.
Christy, what sort of response have you received back on your campus since this occurred last week'
JOHNSON: It's been really overwhelming. I couldn't keep up with the e-mails, just e-mails from people around the state of Iowa, from UNI fans, from Nebraska fans, from Drake fans. It's not been just the local community. I think it's been a statewide thing and even a Midwest thing. So it's been great. Before we left here, we went over to the, Wednesday night we practiced and then we went over the women's basketball game, Iowa State vs. Iowa, and had a little send off from Hilton, (a) standing ovation before we got on the bus. It was a pretty nice way to leave Ames. The support has been amazing.
Coach, obviously you have ties both with Wisconsin and with Nebraska. What's its like coming here when you saw the draw that you had and what teams were going to be here and have you seen Coach Cook at all '
JOHNSON: Yeah, I've seen just about everybody I think now, all the coaching staffs from all the teams. You don't have much time, unfortunately, to catch up, just a brief hi and got to go to practice, but I 'm sure we'll have a chance to do that. But I think it's really neat to have, I guess the volleyball world is pretty small these days, it seems like. I mean, you've got connections everywhere. But to see all of us kind of come back for a bit of a reunion is neat and I think it's a reflection of, honestly, John Cook and Pete Waite and the tradition that Wisconsin has established.
A lot of us have ties here, and he, along with Steve Lowe, started a great tradition here and has trained a lot of good coaches that he's now sent out into the world to do their own thing. It's neat to see all the talent come back and the memories. Chris Bigelow is one of the most amazing coaches I've ever worked with and I learned so much from her. It's just neat to see those people and, unfortunately, we're going to have to play them, but just to get to see them again and catch up.
Christy, you guys upset Wisconsin to get here, can you talk about either the advantage or the disadvantage' Erin, I 'd ask this of you as well, about the Cinderella or being an underdog. Is there a danger in that that maybe your team senses maybe they don't belong or is that a role that you guys relish'
JOHNSON: I would say a week and a half ago, with the Texas game, I think we felt like that we were the underdog. We talked about, `Hey, nothing to lose, let's just go out and play.' I actually think we 're kind of past that. I really feel like our players feel like they deserve to win, that we're playing at an elite level, that we deserved every match that we 've won to get here.
I know I personally don't feel like the underdog anymore. I feel like we are very deserving to be here. We earned it. We earned it the hard way, certainly, and we 're playing great. We're one of the top teams in the country just in terms of how we've been playing lately. Maybe it wasn't reflected all season, but I think it's who we are right now.
BOEVE: I would say a big part of going into last weekend was just believing in ourselves and a lot of that too, kind of having an up-and-down season, pretty streaky, going on small winning streaks, but not just getting the wins that we needed, but not any big huge upsets throughout the season. But I definitely think coming in last weekend, kind of being the underdog or not supposed to win, I just think that helps us play at a more relaxed level of play than coming in and saying, `Oh, we have to win this match.' We just play better like that and that was proved during Kansas, how we kind of tensed up and we came out with the win, but we learned a lot from that match and the matches that followed that.
MANNS: The pressure is definitely taken off of us. I feel the same way as Christy, I don't feel like we're playing like an underdog anymore. We've upset teams, of course, but I don't feel like it's really an upset. I feel like we're at the same level playing, playing at the same level as them, so I don't feel like an underdog at all.
Coach, could you talk about this match up with Cal, what they have versus what you have, basically'
JOHNSON: Cal's obviously a great team. They have two pretty athletic outside hitters. We're going to have to do a great job containing them. They're getting the most sets and the most kills per game just about every match they have, so we'll have to do a good job containing them and do what we do well, which is block and play (defense). We're going to have some one-on-one blocking situations.
What we've been doing lately is just digging the ball and transitioning for points and serving tough. I don't know that we'll have to do anything different or special. We just have to continue to do what we're doing right now, which is passing well, serving tough, playing great defense and making smart decisions on attack. They're a big blocking team. They've got great blocking numbers, so we're going to have to make good decisions on our attack and not let their block take over.
CALIFORNIA
Opening Comment from Coach Rich Feller: Well, it 's great to be here back in Wisconsin this time in the Sweet 16 instead of the first and second rounds here a couple years ago. Our team has worked very very hard this year; we've traveled lots of frequent flyer miles, especially in the last couple weeks and pleased to be here and really happy that our sport is indoors.
Coach, what are the challenges that Iowa State will present and are you surprised that you're matched up with Iowa State '
FELLER: Nothing surprises me anymore. Iowa State 's a pretty good program you can see by their recent record how much they 've improved and their back in the tournament for the third time. They're big, they're quick, they play a very good brand of volleyball. We're expecting to battle for every point that we win.
Obviously people identify Stanford with being close to Sacremento next weekend if they can get there; you guys are right there as well. How big of a drive is it for you guys especially after being on the road for the last two weeks to think about the possibilities to being close to home and playing for a national championship next week'
FELLER: I think we're thinking about tomorrow night, honestly. And we're 50 miles closer than Stanford is to Sacramento.
Coach, it's kind of 'old home week' with Chris Bigelow among others coming back to Wisconsin. Could you just talk a little bit about when you hired Chris what you saw and what she 's brought to the program'
FELLER: I stole her from Wisconsin. Actually, Chris and I go way, way back. She is recognized as the top-talent recruiter in the country I think for women's volleyball. When I first got the call to interview at Cal, she was my very first thought as an assistant coach to begin to build the program. I called her prior to me even going up for interview and as soon as the interview happened, I called her again.
You all hosted 'final four' that year so I made an appointment to see her as soon as the final four was started and interviewed her here because I had just gotten offered the job. I think that was a huge step in the building of the Cal program that is now here in 2007, is bringing some of the new talent and recruiting to final four teams and could help start something from the ground up. I think it's great that she's back here at home; there's lot's of little stories. Volleyball coaches seem to last forever, we don't go away, we just hang on for a long time. All of the coaches that are at this tournament have a lot of history with each other, which is kind of fun.
Angie, what do you see as the team's strengths and do you think the team is playing its best volleyball '
ANGIE PRESSEY: I would definitely say yes. With our last practice before we left to come here was one of the best practices we've had this year. I would definitely say our strength is in our blocking. Ellen Orchard to my right holds our school record for our blocking and it has just been an amazing year for her as well as our team in blocking, I don't know what we are in the Pac-10, wait, we are No. 1 in the Pac-10 in blocking, so that's definitely a strength for us.
What familiarity do you have with Wisconsin Angie, since your father did play in Milwaukee (Bucks) for a while '
PRESSEY: I remember dancing with the mascot (Bango the Buck) mascot at halftime and that's about it. I don't remember him playing too much, I remember short shorts.
Angie, I think I asked you this question when you were here five years ago: You're only 5-8, how do you hit like you do ' Especially being a senior, what have you learned'
PRESSEY: I guess I contribute my jumping to my parents' genes. As far as learning, with leaping ability, you have to have timing as well. People jump high, but it's the timing and when you hit and where you hit that's taken me a while, but over the last few years I've definitely improved in those areas.
Coach, on the topic of blocking, when you look at Iowa State, that's obviously a strength of their game too. Does that make for an interesting matchup'
FELLER: Yeah, I think it will. If you look at the types of teams we both are, we're very similar. They are a big, strong blocking team. They've got some powerful outside hitters, some quick middle blockers, a good setter, they run the same kind of offense that we do, so I think it 's going to be a really interesting matchup.
We have musculed up on a lot of teams this year. I don't know if people have muscled up on them, but when we get into a good rhythm and we figure out some things the team is doing and our blocking is working well and our defense picks up, then our offense is pretty hard to stop. So if we can do that, I think it's going to be a lot more fun on our side but I'm sure there's going to be some great rallies and lots of really hard attacks, a lot of big stuff blocks on both sides.
This is for Ellen and Hana who haven 't really talked much. If you could talk about what you see as the strengths of your team and the challenges that Iowa State presents'
HANA CUTURA: I think that the strength of our team is that we are really supportive of each other and we trust each other. So every time that Angie is hitting, I feel that she's going to get a kill. I think that's the biggest strength of our team.
ELLEN ORCHARD: To add to that, I think right now our team is so cohesive and just this last run of the season, we pick each other up on the court and that's when we go on a roll is whenever we're all just working as one unit. That's when our blocking is on and our defense is a result.
PRESSEY: To go along with that, it's very rare to have a team that you like, I like everyone. Usually, you don't like everyone, but you play with everyone. But this team, we all like each other and we 're all on the same page, it's a great feeling that I've never had before.
MICHIGAN STATE
OPENING STATEMENT FROM COACH CATHY GEORGE: Well, first of all, we're very excited to be here and we'd like to thank University of Wisconsin for hosting this event. You guys do such a tremendous job and every year I come here I marvel at the ability the University of Wisconsin has in putting on a first-class event. So we're excited to be here. It's cold outside, but we 're ready to hang in there, but we're excited to get underway.
The program, basically the coaching staff has been new. This is our third year and it 's been a process and the program has been building year after year with different things that have set each team apart from the other in the steps that we're trying to take to build a team that is a national powerhouse team.
Coach, you mentioned the process of building a program. You're two years removed from the 12-18 finish. You 're now 21-13 and in the NCAA Sweet 16. Can you talk about some of the things that you've done as a staff to complete what is really a remarkable turnaround '
GEORGE: Well, the first year really our focus could only be on what we could control and in our mind, what we could control was the fight that we had, that we tried to instill in the team. It's the fight, it was the defensive attitude, it was the desire, the commitment to a program and to excellence and to also never set your sights low. I mean, to understand that you're here, you 're a Big Ten athlete, you're going for championships, and that 's really what the focus of the program needed to be.
We did not have depth in that year. We did not have all the positions filled, but we did do a nice job in fighting. If you look into that record a couple years ago, we went five (games) with I don't know how many teams, I think it was eight or nine, and came so close to playing a lot of top caliber teams.
The next year, we were able to add a setter to our roster and a libero who helped us and kind of helped our depth a little bit, and we started to bring together our offensive effort. We moved up in the standings in the Big Ten and we improved our record, I think we were 19-12 that year, improved our record, but also had a bid into the NCAA tournament.We were sent to UCLA, and I thought fought very well against a No. 9 Utah team, only to fall short in five games, which had been a trademark of ours from the year before, but we felt that we had made the steps.
This year we have a great nucleus. We have these four seniors here and in addition, we 've been able to add some young, fine players who really have come together. The chemistry of this team is outstanding. They work hard together. They enjoy spending time together and we really, find this, that they're really, they're ready to take on any challenge.
This year marks a first for many things, including beating teams that were nationally ranked, something last year's team did not accomplish, but this year's team was able to move ahead and start to knock down some of the challenges, some of the things that were kind of standing in our way the years before, so that's where we 're at now. Sorry, that was long-winded, wasn't it' I tend to be that way.
This question is for the four seniors. You have gone on the road this season and Cathy mentioned the troubles that you had had in year's past finishing matches. You finished some pretty big ones this year, one here in this building and that's not easy to do, and also a win last week at a nationally seeded Dayton team. Can you tell me what about this team makes it so tough and makes you play as well as you do on the road'
KATIE JOHNSON: I'll take that one first. I really think that, like Cathy said, our chemistry. I think when a team has chemistry or when a team gets their flow going, when a team just will go to battle every night with each other, I think that's what helps you push right through. I think with this group we take the younger girls under our wings and I think that their right in response with us. So when you have a core group like this and also you have those girls that are so willing to come right along with you, I think we could be unstoppable.
ASHLEY SCHATZLE: I think we've developed a lot of trust too. We had to work through that, but we're pretty trusting of each other now.
Your scouting report on Nebraska, what do you see' What can you anticipate from them' You know, this is a program that's got quite the tradition. I guess the tradition alone is part of the scouting report. What do you see from them'
GEORGE: Well, the tradition is duly noted. It 's a program that when I used to play, which was many moons ago in the early `80s, I shouldn't date myself, but back then, Terry Petite had quite the outstanding program and I know we always looked forward to playing the University of Nebraska at that time. It has only grown, it's only gained steam since then, and the program is, obviously, one of the finest in the land.
It is tradition rich. They're defending national champions and we obviously know that we have our work cut out for us. They're strong in many different positions. It's our job to kind of pick on some of what we would perceive to be weaknesses. But the biggest thing that we have to do is control what we can control and that's how we play. And we play together and we play hard and we play with a fight and a never-say-die attitude.
So we need to really make sure that we just go for it and that we're not playing the shirt, we're playing the team and that we make them earn points and not let them have points and there's a difference. I think when you have the tradition that Nebraska does, you see so many teams that are just willing to just give them points in some instances. We came here with a purpose and we're going to go and fight, so that's what we can control.
JOHNSON: I think coach said it best that we 're playing the people and not the jersey.
I guess going along those same lines, coach talked about you guys maybe getting over some hurdles and beating some ranked teams. Are you embracing an underdog role, if you want to say that or is that not even registering to you at all' I don't know if players want to tackle that from left to right.
JOHNSON: Well, personally, I think we feel comfortable playing the underdog. Why not play the underdog' We're like why would you want a target on your back' We've worked so hard. We 've come from not being in, we made some spectacular. Like coach said, we 're playing the team, not the jersey.
MIKEN TROGDON: I just was going to say, it 's like when we enter a gym, we kind of think ourselves as the green fog, like a fog kind of just like descends and then takes care of business and then leaves. I think that because we are an underdog, we can do that well, I think. That kind of that whole fog mentality helps us a lot.
GEORGE: We named it that earlier.
For Cathy, what was kind of the challenge for you in taking over the program three years ago and, kind of conversely, how gratifying is it to be, you know, at this point today'
GEORGE: It was definitely a difficult time because I needed to find out where everything was. I needed to understand who the players were that I was coaching. We needed to understand who filled what position well. We made some changes in where people played as I saw, was able to watch them play, maybe different from the predecessor and just kind of getting a grasp of what it is.
I think with recruiting, I think that one of the biggest hurdles is that you're so far behind anymore because verbal commitments are so early. So getting an idea of who is on the team, first of all, what they were capable of doing without being able to see them in practice, because we weren't able to start practice yet and then getting on the road trying to recruit to the talent that was there and then trying to really help the depth, because the depth was the biggest issue.
Like I said, the first year, we did not have all the positions filled, so it was a challenge in that sense. But I'm very big into dealing with you control what you can control. We didn't dwell on any of that. We wanted to make sure that the first thing we did was we started to develop chemistry, work ethic, fight, heart, passion ' all those things and that's what the challenge was. We went after that right away. Right away in the spring, we worked on a ton on defense that first semester and went after it and just played hard. We really learned at that point that playing hard gets you a lot of points. That's where we started to grovel and play hard and again, dealing with only what you can. There's no time for excuses, drama, anything, you just get after it. That was the challenge. We just started off, getting the team to get to know me, my style, what I was looking for.
When you take over a program, the players that are there, they know what they know from the previous coaching staff and to see why do I want it done this way. What are we doing and why are we doing that' We needed to communicate that to the team and we did that. I think they took to it and even though they still think I'm a little strange, they've come along all right so we've moved along.
I know a lot's happened since then, so this may be a hard question, but Nebraska came to Kalamazoo you're last year (at Western Michigan). Do you remember anything about that match' You 're thoughts on that at that point.
GEORGE: It was a great environment. I remember the place being packed. I thought we played hard, I thought we played well. I remember Tracy Stalls was a freshman; Sarah Pavan was a freshman; Christina Houghtelling was a sophomore at that time. It was a great team. It was a great opportunity for Western Michigan to host Nebraska. I do remember it. I remember Sarah out of the back row; I remember that big left hand. I remember how we wanted to play her and maybe we didn 't play it right. I'm very familiar with that team and the faces are very familiar.
This is for the players. One of your biggest wins, if not your biggest win of the season came here. A lot of people on the night that they announced the tournament field said that winning here was one of the things that got you guys over the hump. Coming in, is it comfortable at this point, knowing that you can win in this place, which can be a very difficult place for Big Ten teams to come into and win'
SCHATZLE: I think it's comfortable. Hopefully, Wisconsin fans will be on our side since we're another Big Ten team. They'll be helping us out.
TROGDON: I agree. Also, one of the things when you go to other site to play in the tournament is getting used to the air flow in the gym and the floor and things like that. Having already been here once this season and been successful here, we know what to expect from the facility, the atmosphere and things like that. We even got the same locker room.
JOHNSON: And also, not only just playing the game do we come here. We come here early on game days and we practice so it's almost like we've been here twice. You come in, you do serve and pass and things like that. We are very familiar with this (facility) so I really think that's going to play to our advantage.
Katie, you lifted up your hand a moment ago. Are you limited in any fashion with your left hand and how did that happen '
JOHNSON: No, not at all. It's just a pinky sprain. I played with a full-length arm cast last year so this is just a little hand thing. I don't think it will be a problem.
GEORGE: She's been playing half a year with it.
NEBRASKA
OPENING STATEMENT FROM COACH JOHN COOK: Well, personally, it's great to be back to Madison. Lot of great memories. Started this morning at eight o'clock at Mickey's. Doesn't get any better than that. I 'm surrounded by two great seniors and I think one of the strengths of our team this year is our senior leadership and their experience, and they're in a great place on leading this team right now. These are also both first-team Academic All-Americans that we're very proud of as well.
John and players can talk about this, you guys had talked about this earlier, about last year, just gearing up to play the home team at a regional and how the focus changes now that Wisconsin is not in it and your approach towards who you're playing.
COOK: Well, last year I think it taught us, a lot of crazy things will happen in the NCAA tournament. So I think what we took from that regional last year, it really doesn't matter who you're going to play, what the crowd is and where you are. You got to expect two really tough matches and so I think that's been our mentality coming into this regional.
For the players, what has John told you about this town' Any secrets that we need to know'
STALLS: Well, not necessarily secrets, but we had a little quiz today on our van ride over here, just how many libraries are in Madison and there's 23, apparently.
SARAH PAVAN: He keeps calling it the Mad City, but then Lizzy (Stemke), our coach, had to correct him and say it was called Mad Town. So we had a little argument about that, but apparently Coach Cook he was calling it the Mad City.
STALLS: Because it's crazy.
Coach, obviously the focus right now is that you're back here, so let's kind of get it out of the way. You mentioned it a little bit. What's it like to come back' How many people have you seen, just touching base with everybody'
COOK: Well, like you guys were saying last week in Nebraska, it was like hitting the reset button. It was amazing just walking through here this morning when we had our administrative meeting. I ran into the electrician who has been here forever and he put up a neon sign we had outside Camp Randall here, said (Wisconsin) Volleyball, is one of the things that we did. Some of the ticket people, Diane Nordstrom, Terry Gawlik, they were all here when I was here. It's just a lot of the same people are still working here, which I think is a, this is a great place to work.
First thing, I went to Mickey's. You guys all need to try Mickey's. It 's right across the street here. The guy that used to own it, he's an old guy now, he's waiting for me to come over and say hi to him, but he knew I was coming back. The whole place, I got a free breakfast this morning. It was just great to go back. There's a lot of great memories here and (its) neat seeing all of the people that are still working here. This is beautiful what their renovations have been as well. It 's a lot different than when I was here. It came out really nice.
Is it kind of like a Bermuda Triangle weekend for you with the three people with connections with each other here this weekend, between you and Lizzy and everybody'
COOK: Yeah, that's, it's kind of, kind of weird how all that turns out. But Chris Bigelow, who is coaching for Cal, was an assistant here. Christy Johnson I hired from Millard North High School. Lee Maes formerly coached at Cal, so there's a lot of interesting connections from that part. Russ Carney at Michigan State used to be the head coach here. That was a long time ago, but I remember his name being mentioned as one of the head coaches. So there 's a lot of ties coming back here.
I had breakfast this morning with Colleen Neels, who is an assistant coach at Wisconsin, who was our setter in '97 when Wisconsin won the Big Ten championship, so lot of great connections. To be honest with you, it makes me feel old, but it's also, it 's kind of neat to see these coaches be so successful that came through the Wisconsin program, especially when we were building this program.
Chris Bigelow, really she's a great recruiter, one of the best recruiters in the country and she really helped build this Wisconsin program and now she's doing the same thing at Cal. She was at Texas before I hired her at Wisconsin, when they won the national championship there. There's a lot of talented people who have done great. It's very gratifying.
Sarah and Tracy, the three other teams have already come in here and talked a little bit about the regional and the fact that Nebraska is the defending national champions, having you guys in this regional. What are you guys doing to fire yourselves up for the other teams in this regional '
PAVAN: I think we're pretty self-motivated. I mean we've had a target on our back all season long, because that's how teams refer to us as, the defending national champions. I mean, everybody wants to knock us off, so we've had to deal with that kind of pressure all year long.
As far as this weekend, making the final four and winning again has been the goal all season long. So the teams that are here this weekend are standing in our way. We are very prepared and we're very motivated just to come out and play some great volleyball and play to our potential in order to make it to Sacramento.
STALLS: I think a lot of also just what we 're trying to do as a group is to stay focused on the things that we can control. The opponents are going to bring it and that's the way it is and that's the way you want it to be in a competition like this. So we want to keep working on just our relationships with each other, making sure that we're bringing the strongest group out there possible and just thinking of ways of how we can, what that looks like to build on that. And again, just going into each of these practices feeling like we gave our best and we know that our preparation is good and to be able to trust that when we go out and compete. Really trying to simplify it, what we can and cannot control.
John, for the other match, you mentioned Christy Johnson. You've seen what she's done in your conference and what is it about her or what has she done to turn things around'
COOK: Iowa State was the doormat of the Big 12 and the first thing she did is she made them believe they could win and now she's really got them believing they can win. (Athletic Director) Jamie Pollard needs to give her a bonus or somebody is going to steal her away. She's done a remarkable job. And Iowa State, for many, many years, just was really not even very competitive in that conference and it's amazing what she's done in a short period, time period she's had. And she's done it with Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota recruits. So she's doing it with pretty much a couple state area and she 's got them in the Sweet 16, very impressive.
For the players, how does the mentality change from looking for your first national championship and then defending it '
STALLS: Well, you bring to the table, on the second time around, obviously more experience and to look back and be able to see, okay, what was successful last year. What are things that we want to continue to keep going in the direction, the pursuit of the No. 2 championship. And also though what things maybe didn't work out so well. So being able to adjust and make changes. So that 's kind of part of the whole journey, the whole process and knowing too, though, that you start the second season and it's still kind of a clean slate in terms of the dynamics are completely different. I mean we added five freshmen this year. That 's a lot. That's a big change in what the team is. That part, it makes the journey completely different. There's a lot of experience in terms of the competition and what to expect and preparation, but in terms of managing our team and the relationships on our team which is key, it's a completely different journey.
What were some of the things from last year that you learned from as far as things that you did last year that you wouldn 't do again this year, the things that you learned'
STALLS: I guess there's things that in terms of just looking out for certain things, like complacency or the threat of letting expectations control what you're thinking or outside getting into the inside. And that's not necessarily what happened, but it was always a threat. So again, it 's still a threat this year. So really trying to battle against things like that and having a clear mission statement is an important part of that.
Coach, Christy (Johnson) told me that she wasn't necessarily looking to become a college coach when you hired her. What did you see in her' What kind of potential did you see in her as a volleyball coach'
COOK: Well, when I hired her at Wisconsin, we were trying to build this program and really take the next step to be competitive so we could compete for a Big Ten Championship. So the first thing was, here's a player who won a national championship from Nebraska, so that was No. 1. Second thing is she was a setter and I needed somebody to set. We only had one setter on our team, so I needed somebody else to be able to set in practice. Selfishly, I wanted, we needed a setter and I wanted somebody to work with the setters, the setter that we had here. It was Colleen Neels at the time.
I just knew she understood, I mean, I saw Christy with not very much talent, just great skill, but great leadership, great competitiveness, win a national championship, will that team to a national championship. So I thought those strengths could really help us here.
John, I'll start with you and then get the players reaction too. Obviously, the day you guys leave there's tragedy strike in Omaha. How much of that did you guys follow last night' I don 't mean this to sound crass or anything, but how much of a distraction is it ' Are you guys following it or is it not in the forefront for you guys '
COOK: Well, we didn't hear a whole lot because we were at practice and then traveling last night, so we just heard glimpses of it and really not that much details. But it's shocking to know that in Nebraska something like that could happen, because it's ' you live in Nebraska. You feel like it's a really safe place. So it's a tragedy, but it happens almost every day, it seems like, all across America.
STALLS: I think it's we have in the hotel room and stuff, we've been catching up on just some of the information that 's been happening. I know there's some players with some small connections. It's just tragic and it's sad and try to manage that as best we can, but again to be careful. It's important to not let it be on the forefront of our minds as we enter into the regionals.
I guess for the players, what have you learned about Michigan State throughout this week, because it's obviously somebody you didn't see this year'
PAVAN: Our coaching staff does a great job all the time of scouting the teams we're playing to make us prepared. I know all of us feel that going into the match tomorrow we're going to be a very, very well prepared team, just understanding tendencies and just really having a solid game plan ready for when we go out there. I think we're really confident in our preparation. We have learned a lot and we're definitely going to take what we've learned and put that into action on the floor.
John, now that you've become a paid spokesmen for Mickey's free breakfast, where are taking the team for dinner'
COOK: Meeting Coach (Barry) Alvarez at Blue Moon later, but we're going to Biaggi's, I didn't even know they had one here, but when my director of operations said where do you want to go for dinner Friday night, I couldn't think of a place where we could take the team, so she found Biaggi's. This is the Mad City. There's a lot of great establishments here, but to serve a group like Nebraska volleyball, it needs to be a special place.
Coach, what's the health of your team going into the weekend and I guess, Christina had some back problems last week '
COOK: Christina is still, she was in practice yesterday. She'll go through practice today. So she's really day to day, but she's getting better. Otherwise, this time of year the key is have your team physically rested so they feel good, because it's been a long at this point of the year they feel a long season.
I think the other point is mental rest. This year she asked a question about some of things that are different. We've managed our team much different this year than we did last year, knowing we have experience. These guys know what we need to do to get this done, so we should have a lot in our tank, so we'll have a lot in our tank for how deep we have to dig this weekend.
How has Lizzy (Stemke) done as an assistant for you this year'
COOK: I wish I had our setter here. She could tell you, because she's worked with the setters, but Lizzy, I think will be a rising star in the coaching profession. She's done a great job of training our setters this year, along with all the other responsibilities that she has.
I'll go back to the analogy with Christy, Lizzy was a middle blocker who I recruited here to be a setter. I remember her first match here. We were playing Iowa and I think we had already clinched the Big Ten or somewhere in there. So I put her in the third game. It was traditional score. We were up 14-1. On my second timeout, it was 14-14. I had to pull her back out.
So that was her first experience as a setter, but look at what she did in her next three years and what she did post-Wisconsin and now she brings that into the .... I've actually been trying to hirer her for a couple of years, but she was playing professionally. I was trying to talk her into a previous opening we had, so I've been after her and I recognize the gifts that she has. Her dad is a legendary coach. Her sister's a coach at Central Florida, so she's got coaching in her blood.
For Tracy and for Sarah, if you could both touch on it a little bit. It's a question that keeps coming up because you're both seniors and as you go on, it could be your last time stepping on the court. How hungry are you to make sure it's not your last time with everything going on'
PAVAN: I'm pretty hungry. Every time, I tell myself this isn't going to be the last time I play. Tomorrow night is not going to be the last time I play. I tell myself that before every game now. And I know every game could be my last and it's sad. I think I can speak for the other three seniors that we are going to do everything we can to make sure the team is successful. We 've all worked so hard in our four years here and we aren't ready to be done yet. We're very motivated and I'm just going to compete as hard as I can.
STALLS: You got my heart thumping and my hands sweating with that question. I think Sarah said it really well. There is a level of great determination among us four. There are times in a match where there's eye contact made and there's a `Hey, we make the plays happen to get this done.' and there's a power in that because there's just a great energy and a great competitive fire just among us. And wanting to bring out the absolute best in this team, because this is a special group. And it's been an incredible four years of just growth and of good things and bad things. To have that end with a win is what we want to do. So, it's a great challenge.
