Dreaming of a new locker room
September 01, 2016 | Volleyball
Badgers return home from Hawaii to new digs
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UWBadgers.com Insider
One minute they were a weary, gamey, rag-tag bunch in need of showers and some shut-eye.
The next they were giddy, surrounded by splendor, rejoicing at their tremendous good fortune.
Members of the Wisconsin volleyball team arrived at the Field House early Monday afternoon after a draining, but satisfying eight-day trip to Hawaii for the Rainbow Wahine Invitational in Honolulu.
The Badgers prevailed in all three season-opening matches – including one against sixth-ranked Hawaii – which resulted in their move from fourth to second in the latest American Volleyball Coaches' Association top 25 poll.
Getting back to Madison meant covering some 4,000 miles and five time zones from Sunday into Monday. When the UW entourage finally arrived at the UW Field House, everyone was dealing with some element of jet lag that may linger a while.
"I'm still kind of off, I guess," senior middle blocker Haleigh Nelson said after practice Tuesday. "I wouldn't be able to tell you what time of day it was if you were to ask me."
What about the rest of the party?
"Some people slept a lot," Nelson said. "Some people slept 14 hours (Monday) night. I slept 10. Some got the usual eight.
"I think everyone feels a little bit different. It kind of depends. Some feel groggy. Some feel like they don't notice (a problem) at all."
If any one of them was loopy when the Badgers arrived inside the Field House and shed their equipment bags, that quickly changed when the door to their newly refurbished locker room was opened and they trooped into a new world.
"We're tired. We're jet-lagged. We probably smell bad from being on an airplane for 11 hours from being in airports and everything," senior middle blocker Tori Blake said. "Then we get downstairs and it's this oh-my-goodness moment. I felt like I was dreaming almost."
For the first time UW players and coaches saw a new locker room, lounge, study space, sound system, video auditorium, athletic training area and coaches' headquarters.
The $1.5 million initiative to spruce up the 86-year-old facility is still ongoing, but the view so far is fabulous.
"We didn't know what it was going to look like in terms of how big it was going to be," Nelson said.
"It's so classy. I don't think it's overdone. There's not unnecessary things in there that are just flashy."
High ceilings give the area an added sense of size throughout. Dark woods used for the locker cubicles – each has an etched panel with the player's name and picture – suggest a hint of luxury.
The leather sofa in the lounge is sizeable enough to accommodate all four freshmen – setter Mallory Dixon, libero Sarah Dodd, libero M.E. Dodge and outside hitter Molly Haggerty – as they sprawled out under blankets watching the big-screen TV.
"There's a lot attention to detail and all the people that put in all the hard work into our locker room, it really shows," Nelson said.
There was a time when the space was used for the men's basketball team when it called the Field House – not the Kohl Center -- home. That dates back to the mid-1990s.
"When I first got here it was still the refurbished men's basketball locker room, so we actually went from having two urinals in our locker room to having a beautiful masterpiece," Blake said. "To go from two urinals to this crazy, amazing space is insane to me. It blows my mind."
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 Home Opener Friday, Sept. 2 7 p.m. UW Field House |
UW faces No. 18 San Diego (1-1) at 7 p.m. on Friday and Texas A&M Corpus Christi (2-1) at 1 p.m. Sunday. San Diego will play Texas A&M CC at 4 p.m. on Saturday.
"This is a big-time test, leaving things that are in the past in the past and concentrating on the things in front of you," Wisconsin coach Kelly Sheffield said, noting that San Diego has NCAA Final Four-caliber talent. "We'll find out how many of our players are still on a beach enjoying the sun and how many of them are here in the land of the cheese curds, ready to rock and roll."
The Badgers certainly enjoyed themselves in Hawaii. They snorkeled, hiked and played tourists. They saw Pearl Harbor and Diamond Head. They also got acquainted and the results were uplifting.
Sheffield was impressed with the approach to preparing for victories over Hawaii (3-1), Arizona (3-0) and Kansas State (3-0). Once sight-seeing time was over it was all business.
"The practices, they were locked in," he said. "I don't know how many teams in my career that could do that, to put that aside and have it be about this."
Sheffield noted how two freshmen – Dodd and Haggerty – answered moments of adversity. Dodd struggled initially, but instead of sulking, found a rhythm. Haggerty, meanwhile, had an epic debut against Hawaii – 19 kills and 16 digs – only to experience a frustrating night vs. Arizona.
"She responded the right way," Sheffield said of Haggerty.
Haggerty came back with near-perfect hitting performance against Kansas State, hitting a career-best .609 with 14 kills on 23 attempts and no errors.
Nelson was asked what she learned about her teammates over the course of three matches.
"From the very first practice I knew it was going to be easy to connect with each other and everyone would be in focus all the time," she said. "But I wasn't that positive that we were going to be that collectively resilient when challenged."
Nelson specifically mentioned the match against Arizona. The Badgers had to rally in all three sets in part because they had a hard time adjusting to the way the Wildcats defended.
"I didn't know this group was going to respond the way it did," Nelson said.
Blake said she learned a great deal about the people around her.
"We have all the pieces that we need, but seeing all the gears come together and turn together, that's how I picture a team. All the gears turning at the same time, working together and where they fit.
"It was a beautiful weekend obviously – 3-0, everyone loves that obviously – but to see the team work together as it did, that was awesome."
It was a great trip for the Badgers, but their return was even more memorable.
Nelson said the new digs prompted her to reflect on all the players that came to UW before her.
"They were the ones that made the decision to remake this program, to redefine what it means to be a Badger," she said. "Without that, we wouldn't have the locker room."
Blake said their new home headquarters came with a price that goes beyond money.
"Every inch of that place is blood, sweat and tears, especially from the coaching staff," she said. "They'll fight to the death for us and we'll fight to the death for them.
"You look at it go, 'Oh, my gosh, look at all the support we have.' Locker rooms like that don't get built just because a person has a check. It's a community of support behind us and we're so lucky to have them."
Blake then leashed a knowing smile.
"This is our home now," she said. "This is our space. This is where we kick butt. That's really cool."
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