Utah-Colorado Quotes
November 27, 2015 | Volleyball
Utah-Colorado Quotes
Head Coach Liz Kritza
On Overcoming Team's Hitting Errors in the First Set
“These guys know how to play. We can have very frank conversations. I could tell them we dropped that set by six points and it's probably our worst hitting percentage in a set that we had all season. They know what that means; it means that you can't give up six unforced hitting errors and expect to have the results that we want. They calmed down. When you have such a discrepancy in your hitting percentage, it's really hard to win. You have to come up with some extraordinary points somewhere else, whether it's blocking or service aces. For us, we had to settle into our offense and make sure we were getting into rhythm. I changed the matchup around. The one that we went out there with wasn't the best one. I went back and retooled and put them on a different matchup, and it worked.”
On NCAA Tournament
“I'm really proud, because we talked about controlling what we can and these kids did everything they can to make sure these last couple matches we solidify our resume and do what we need to. Anytime you get 11 wins in a league this tough, nobody should balk at that. It is still a huge question mark; it will be until the brackets come out Sunday night. The RPI is an interesting thing; it's a mathematical formula. I've coached teams that have benefitted from it; I've coached teams that have not benefitted from it. What we count on the selection committee to do is put together a tournament that showcases the best volleyball in the country. If they do that, I'm very confident, because we have six matches against ranked opponents that are wins. I like how we fair when people line us up against other people that we could possibly get compared against. I think the selection committee will do their job. If they look at everything as they should, I'm confident that won't be the last match you'll see these girls play.”
On Program's 500th Win
“Milestones for this program are fantastic. I think 500 wins for any program shows the strength of this program. I'm really honored to be coaching this program and coaching these kids to get this really significant win. At home, with the particular seniors we have, it makes it even more special. We're really proud to represent this institution. To be able to come up with this win in this fashion, that is who we are. That's what we've been and that's why this program has gone from where it was to where it is. That's why I know when these two young ladies [seniors Alexis Austin and Nicole Edelman] go out and play professionally, they'll take that with them. They're going to wreak some havoc in whatever league they play in.”
Players
Alexis Austin, Sr., OH
On playing final match at Coors Events Center
“I just want to thank my teammates, since we can't do anything without them. It was great to pull off the win in the last match.”
On adjustments made after the first set
“We were able to calm ourselves down. Like I said last time it's all about keeping that calm confidence and playing strong. It's just a mindset we need to have.”
Cierra Simpson, Jr., DS/L
On getting the seniors their final win
“It was a great feeling. Obviously these two seniors have done so much for the program, just like they were saying in the beginning these two players have been the main parts of building this program. I think it was just huge that we were able to send them off the floor in Coors with a win. I just can't thank them enough for being great teammates and friends.”
On adjustments made after the first set
“We just played our game, and played the way we know how to play. We were able to get into our rhythm and go for it.”
On waiting for the selection committee
“I'm going to try and not over think it; we've done all that we can do and now we hope for the best.”
Nicole Edelman, Sr., S
On playing final match at Coors Events Center
“It feels great to get that last win here, especially since it was a team effort all the way around. When we went down in the first set I think we really did a good job of coming together and finding our rhythm, since we knew that we could beat them. I just want to thank my teammates for everything and pulling that win out today was really special.”
On adjustments made after the first set
“We just put a lot more pressure on their serve and we were able to control their serve as we received it. That made my job easier on offense and we made some changes with timing on the outsides. I think those were the main differences.”
On waiting for the selection committee
“I'm going to try and not think about it too much so I don't drive myself crazy. I think we've done all that we can do and controlled what we can control; now it's just a waiting game.”
