University of Tennessee Athletics
MINNESOTA-WINTHROP POSTGAME QUOTES
December 02, 2005 | Volleyball
Dec. 2, 2005
MINNESOTA LOCKER ROOM
HEAD COACH MIKE HEBERT: "Winthrop runs a very different sort of offensive system. A lot of people refer to it as a swing offense. We knew that we had to do two things against that. Number one, we had to identify their patterns and get our block established in the right areas. The second thing was serve tough enough to take them out of that system. I thought we did both. On our side of the net, I thought we passed very well. We had a very smooth evening."
(on Tennessee & Jacksonville State): "Both teams are fairly orthodox in the offense they run. I don't think we're going to have to design anything like in tonight's match, but the other two teams are more orthodox in how they approach offense. We're not going to have to get down and scratch out some unique scheme. Tennessee provides a much better blocking team. Frankly, we haven't spent a lot of time on either team, but by tomorrow afternoon we'll have the whole thing scouted out and ready to go."
MEREDITH NELSON: "I think tonight was a good start for us, I think we're pleased with how we came out of the blocks for the NCAA Tournament. It's always nice to get on your feet fast and kind of get things rolling for yourself. It was a good night for us to build confidence. I think we're pleased with the performance and excited for tomorrow night."
MEGHAN CUMPSTON: "We executed our scouting report really well. I think we were really knowledgeable about the plays that Winthrop was going to run. We came out really prepared, we executed well and gained a lot of confidence going into tomorrow."
WINTHROP LOCKER ROOM
HEAD COACH JOEL McCARTNEY: "First I want to congratulate Minnesota. They are a class-act program and have a successful history in this tournament. I am very proud of Winthrop's program and these two young ladies to my right, (seniors Mary Hock and Beth Waggoner) who were two of my first recruits. We brought these two athletes in at a time when Winthrop had not won a championship, and these two (Hock and Waggoner) leave here winning four. Getting back to this tournament was quite an accomplishment. Our goals are to move forward and forward, but right now we are very appreciative of how these two affected our program."
MARY HOCK: "My time at Winthrop has been amazing. This coaching staff and this program are on its way up, and to be a part of that has been a blessing. Tonight's match we came out and played our hardest, but a lot of things didn't go our way. Hopefully next year we will be back here to give it another shot."
BETH WAGGONER: "The thing I really take away about this match is that the first 16 points we came out firing, and there was no doubt in my mind that we can play teams like this (Minnesota). Even though we didn't play that way the entire night, the fact that we can feels good. I am so excited for this legacy to continue on, and I just wish them all the best next year to take the season further. I am so thankful to have the chance to be able to be a part of that."
