Indiana University Athletics
Water Polo Season Preview Quotes
1/19/2017 11:42:00 AM | Women's Water Polo
IU Water Polo: UCSB Winter Invite
January 19, 2016
Team Quotes
Head Coach Ryan Castle
On beginning the season against five top-25 teams…
"I want to first see what we can execute from what we've practiced, and then how much we can compete against those teams. There are a lot of things we haven't practiced, and in those phases of the game I want to see us just competing, putting pressure on the other teams, and adapting to set the team up in whichever way we can. Our top priority is to work out what we've been practicing and putting it into motion against other teams."
Are they anxious to start live competition?
"They're anxious for some sunlight and to play some games. Obviously there are always some jitters with the first game of the year. We're excited and nervous to see how we can gel. One of our goals is to always win the first game of the season, so we're setting ourselves up for that. With that being said, CSU Bakersfield is a pretty good team. They're very organized, and they only graduated a few players. Coach (Jason) Gall runs a very good system, their kids know what they're doing, and it'll be a tough task for us to break it down. It all comes down to how we can compete."
On the adjustment of the newcomers who joined the team at semester…
"It's been fun, they brought a lot of enthusiasm and excitement. We now have a lot more bodies at practice, so we have substitutes to work with. It's great having seven freshmen in total to keep us youthful. There are lots of little learning mistakes, but it's been good to add to our roster and our depth."
On the goals for the team…
"The goals will stay the same regardless of whether it's my first season or 20th season. We want to win the first game, we want to try and win our rivalry game, win our conference championship, and eventually winning a national championship."
On anticipated matchups…
"I'm looking forward to seeing how we match up with some of the Big West teams. I'd like to start getting good looks at the MPSF contenders—Cal, Stanford, UCLA, and USC—that's our first reach of sorts. We also want to get back later in the season and dominate in our conference. The CWPA presents a unique challenge because while other conferences play one game per day, we will play two in a day or four in a weekend. There are different challenges to embrace."
Players
Jessica Gaudreault • Jr.
On gearing up for the tough competition this weekend…
"We've really been focusing on the first day against UC Santa Barbara and CSU Bakersfield, trying to lock in those wins before we look down the weekend. The game against Hawaii will be important since we get another shot at them later in the season. We'll test the water against them this weekend so we're ready for when we head out to their pool."
On the changes and similarities with last year's staff and the new staff…
"The good thing is that we also have a lot of new players on the team. We have seven freshmen, a transfer, and I came back after two years. We have nine people coming in total who will be new to this team. That gives everything a refreshing feel."
What do those freshmen bring to the team?
"Competitiveness. It's become much more competitive in the water with the team, and that's how we're going to get better in the long run."
On buying in to Castle's tactics…
"He has taken a long look at what our team can bring with the personnel, and how that matches up against our opponents. Every week, we've focused on who our weekend matchups will be. So our tactics are really straightforward, and they play to our strengths, but they're tailored to who we're going to meet that weekend."
Kelly Matthews • Jr.
On awaiting the fruits of the preparation from last semester, Castle's first with the team…
"We're really excited, but obviously nerves come into play at first. For some of the players, it'll be their first time playing a game at this level. Overall, we're really anxious and ready to begin."
On the changes and similarities with last year's coaching staff and the new staff…
"He's done well to maintain our team culture, but he's definitely applied his own tactical plan, which has been really helpful. We're working on that and how we can stick to the game plan."
Mollie Williams • Fr.
On coming to IU at semester, making quick adjustments in a few weeks leading to the first game…
"It's been really good getting to know all the girls, because they're all really talented with various experiences coming from different countries and areas. I feel like we've come together pretty quickly, which will make it easier to go into this first weekend with a strong start."
January 19, 2016
Team Quotes
Head Coach Ryan Castle
On beginning the season against five top-25 teams…
"I want to first see what we can execute from what we've practiced, and then how much we can compete against those teams. There are a lot of things we haven't practiced, and in those phases of the game I want to see us just competing, putting pressure on the other teams, and adapting to set the team up in whichever way we can. Our top priority is to work out what we've been practicing and putting it into motion against other teams."
Are they anxious to start live competition?
"They're anxious for some sunlight and to play some games. Obviously there are always some jitters with the first game of the year. We're excited and nervous to see how we can gel. One of our goals is to always win the first game of the season, so we're setting ourselves up for that. With that being said, CSU Bakersfield is a pretty good team. They're very organized, and they only graduated a few players. Coach (Jason) Gall runs a very good system, their kids know what they're doing, and it'll be a tough task for us to break it down. It all comes down to how we can compete."
On the adjustment of the newcomers who joined the team at semester…
"It's been fun, they brought a lot of enthusiasm and excitement. We now have a lot more bodies at practice, so we have substitutes to work with. It's great having seven freshmen in total to keep us youthful. There are lots of little learning mistakes, but it's been good to add to our roster and our depth."
On the goals for the team…
"The goals will stay the same regardless of whether it's my first season or 20th season. We want to win the first game, we want to try and win our rivalry game, win our conference championship, and eventually winning a national championship."
On anticipated matchups…
"I'm looking forward to seeing how we match up with some of the Big West teams. I'd like to start getting good looks at the MPSF contenders—Cal, Stanford, UCLA, and USC—that's our first reach of sorts. We also want to get back later in the season and dominate in our conference. The CWPA presents a unique challenge because while other conferences play one game per day, we will play two in a day or four in a weekend. There are different challenges to embrace."
Players
Jessica Gaudreault • Jr.
On gearing up for the tough competition this weekend…
"We've really been focusing on the first day against UC Santa Barbara and CSU Bakersfield, trying to lock in those wins before we look down the weekend. The game against Hawaii will be important since we get another shot at them later in the season. We'll test the water against them this weekend so we're ready for when we head out to their pool."
On the changes and similarities with last year's staff and the new staff…
"The good thing is that we also have a lot of new players on the team. We have seven freshmen, a transfer, and I came back after two years. We have nine people coming in total who will be new to this team. That gives everything a refreshing feel."
What do those freshmen bring to the team?
"Competitiveness. It's become much more competitive in the water with the team, and that's how we're going to get better in the long run."
On buying in to Castle's tactics…
"He has taken a long look at what our team can bring with the personnel, and how that matches up against our opponents. Every week, we've focused on who our weekend matchups will be. So our tactics are really straightforward, and they play to our strengths, but they're tailored to who we're going to meet that weekend."
Kelly Matthews • Jr.
On awaiting the fruits of the preparation from last semester, Castle's first with the team…
"We're really excited, but obviously nerves come into play at first. For some of the players, it'll be their first time playing a game at this level. Overall, we're really anxious and ready to begin."
On the changes and similarities with last year's coaching staff and the new staff…
"He's done well to maintain our team culture, but he's definitely applied his own tactical plan, which has been really helpful. We're working on that and how we can stick to the game plan."
Mollie Williams • Fr.
On coming to IU at semester, making quick adjustments in a few weeks leading to the first game…
"It's been really good getting to know all the girls, because they're all really talented with various experiences coming from different countries and areas. I feel like we've come together pretty quickly, which will make it easier to go into this first weekend with a strong start."
Players Mentioned
GK
/ Women's Water Polo
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/ Women's Water PoloATK
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