Nov. 17, 2010
In preparation for this weekend's series for the No. 1-ranked Wisconsin women's hockey team, UWBadgers.com caught up with sophomore defenseman Saige Pacholok to get her take on the Badgers' series against Robert Morris.
Q: How does playing in two-straight road series affect the team?
Pacholok: Now that we've played in one road series, I think that we're a little more comfortable and I don't think it will affect us too much. It is a bit further from our home, which is fine, and we will fly there. We might still need a little adjusting, but I think we'll be fine.
Q: How did the team take advantage of having a week off in between series?
Pacholok: We did a couple forward-only and defense-only practices, so that was really good. We got to work on individual skills and our positional skills, which is really good, and we got a lot of skating in. I think the week off really helped us.
Q: Did playing in the team's first road game of the season have a big impact on the outcome of that game?
Pacholok: I don't think the loss had anything to do with playing at home for so long before. I think that playing at home and getting to know each other as a team and being at home really made us feel comfortable as a team. When we went on the road, it made it easier to adapt. I think that we worked hard that weekend in Minnesota, and it was just the luck of the draw--it didn't go our way.
Q: How does the team feel knowing that Robert Morris has allowed 51 goals this season--the most among NCAA Division 1 women's hockey teams?
Pacholok: I don't that we should think about that so much as a team. We just need to play our game and play really good defense and get off as many shots as we can. We just have to keep playing our game.
Q: What does the team have to look out for against Robert Morris?
Pacholok: If I remember correctly from last year, they're a very hard-working team. The like to dump and chase and are a very grinder-like team, so I think we just need to keep our heads up, make smart plays and outsmart them.
The top-ranked Badgers will travel to Pittsburgh to take on Robert Morris this weekend. Both games will begin at 2 p.m. CT at the RMU Island Sports Center. Badger fans can follow the action live with the Gameday Blog.
