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BY ANDY BAGGOT
UWBadgers.com Insider
MADISON, Wis. — Kat Vosters didn't feel right. The men's basketball team was getting ready to play Michigan for the Big Ten Conference tournament title earlier this month and Vosters, in her third season as director of operations for the club, felt a sharp pain in her stomach. She always feels nervous before a game, but this was different. So she told the team's long-time athletic trainer, Henry Perez-Guerra, and he arranged for a quick hospital visit after the game where the primary fear — appendicitis — was ruled out.
Vosters feels a little bit better, which is good given her grueling schedule. She's the logistical go-to person for coach Greg Gard and the Badgers, who play Florida in the Sweet Sixteen on Friday in New York City. Before leaving, Vosters, a native of Fitchburg, sat in her Kohl Center office to talk about her role, where she got her calm demeanor and the best money she has ever spent:
Regarding your health scare, was it a short-term thing?
"It took a few days to get over. I'm actually having some back pain and whatever. I might have a little bit of the flu; I'm not really sure. This time of year we're just traveling so much, so everyone's getting a little bit of something. It is what it is. We just kind of power through it and we'll rest when it's over."
You pursued a degree in journalism at UW. How did you plan to use that?
"My way into getting into sports I thought would be through journalism. Then, in college, my freshman year I learned about the student manager position here and I thought maybe that would give me an opportunity to meet some people through sports writers or reporters. Once I became immersed in the position of student manager I realized that journalism wasn't really what I wanted to do in sports. It was more (with the) team and ops rather than covering (sports)."
Is this a high-maintenance team?
"Not any different than any other year. I wouldn't say anybody's high maintenance. There's just a lot of things going on and a lot of people to communicate to. No one person is high maintenance by any means. It's a high maintenance position with high maintenance responsibility."
What was your first crisis in this job and your biggest lesson from it?
"I wouldn't say there was a first crisis. Going back to my days as a student manager there were things we dealt with day-to-day. There will always be something that comes up that changes your plans or was not what you planned for. What I learned is that we can almost always find a way to keep going and keep things going smooth. That's my goal. Snafus happen every day. We just try to minimize it by planning for them as much as you can, knowing that you only control what you can control."
You're clearly a planner. Are you an introvert or an extrovert?
"I think an extrovert, but I like my time by myself."
Is there such a thing as a routine day with the Badgers?
"Yes and no. … Every day I'm prepared for something to come up that we weren't planning for. Actually, scratch that. There's no such thing as a routine day. Routine for us is traveling, then being home for two days and traveling again and practicing and playing the late-night game. There's absolutely no routine now that I think about it. But for us it feels regular because that's what we know."
Where did you get your calm?
"Going back eight years ago when I started as a student manager you realize that you're always going to be learning and things are always going to happen that are out of your control. So you try to control what you can control and just deal with whatever happens as best as you can. For me, I know when something goes wrong off the court, most eyes look to me to fix it and you need to have somebody who's collected in that position. The (charter) plane goes down (with mechanical issues) and you look at your ops person and they're freaking out, that doesn't look very reassuring. I feel confident and comfortable in being able to handle most things that come my way. Over time you learn there's really no point in stressing out more than you need to."
What's the biggest difference between Bo Ryan's bench and Greg Gard's bench?
"Coach Gard takes a lot of peoples' opinions and advice into consideration when he makes his decision. Coach Ryan had been around so long and he knew exactly how he wanted things done, so we let him do his thing. I think now we have a more collaborative group. Coach Gard is very accepting of all sorts of ideas and that's not just on the court. That's in the locker room and the office. He's figuring out and learning how he wants to run a program, so he's taking in as much as he can and thinking of all sorts of ideas. The busiest time of my career here was when Coach Gard got hired because he had so many ideas that he wanted to tap into. 'Let's try this. Let's try that.' With Coach Ryan, he was very structured. He wasn't going to change how he ran things too much. You knew what he was going to do. Coach Gard's figuring it out. He wanted to try a lot of things out, so he kept us busy, but it allowed us to see what worked and what he did like and didn't like."
What's the first trait you notice about a recruit when he visits campus?
"Their ability to communicate. … I'm looking for somebody who can talk and who has a good family that's supportive and who's eager and passionate to be here. You can see kids who know Wisconsin basketball and know what we do and they're excited to come here. … What I value most is can we communicate well?"
What's the best money you ever spent?
"My dog. I have a Golden Retriever. She's 4."
Her name?
"Macey."
So how much did you spend?
"She was $500 from a breeder, but there's been a lot (of spending) since then. She keeps my blood pressure down."
When's the last time you had goosebumps?
"Every day before a game. I get very nervous before the game starts. I don't ever eat a pregame meal because my stomach is always in knots before a game."
What's the best perk of your job?
"Being around these people. Growing up, dreaming of this position and being a fan of the team. I think now the greatest part of it is being able to celebrate the victories and be there during the hard times with this group of people. It's a long season and it's great that it's extending, but to have this group of people — we've consistently had a great group — to share this time with because we are away so many days of the year. Being able to celebrate with this group, having the state behind us, is something I never thought I'd be a part of."
