Indiana University Athletics
Catching Up With Erika Flanders
4/10/2007 12:00:00 AM | Women's Soccer
April 10, 2007
Throughout the spring of 2007, IUHOOSIERS.com will catch up with different members of the women's soccer team as they go through their spring season. The interview for Tuesday, April 10, is with assistant coach Erika Flanders.
What is your favorite memory of the 2006 season?
"It has to be the inspirational speech that Coach Lyon delivered to the girls during halftime of the Penn State game. He was really wound up in his own crazy way and left the girls speechless after his talk. That type of speech doesn't happen too often in the IU women's soccer locker room."
What can we expect from the team in 2007?
"I am hoping that everyone can expect lots of GOALS and SHUTOUTS... did I mention GOALS... I mean GOALS is what people are looking for, right?! I am hoping that our 16 returning players mesh well with our 14 incoming freshman and create a great overall team. GOALS! And I hope that we are able to be successful in the Big Ten and NCAA Tournaments. And...well... I hope we score lots of GOALS!!"
What is your favorite road trip?
"My favorite road trip so far has to be one we took during my first year at IU. We took the girls to California to play USC and LMU. This trip was my first trip anywhere with the IU team and we had a great time out on the West Coast. The entire team went on a celebrity tour together in between game days and we were on a mission to find some celebrities."
Why did you decide to come and coach at Indiana?
"I came to Indiana because I wanted to coach at a high level and nothing beats coaching in the Big Ten. Also, the soccer tradition that surrounds the campus of IU is amazing."
How has the spring season gone so far?
"The spring season has been great! In most of our contests we haven't been scored on and have been able to put the ball in the back of the net quite a few times. That is saying a lot since we are only playing with 14 players right now. Everyone has done a great job of staying healthy and keeping a positive attitude. The spring season is always tough to get through because you can only play five days of games, which means a lot more conditioning and training for the girls."
What is the best part about being a coach?
"The best part of being a coach is being able to recruit different players for each class and see how they are able to jell into a terrific team each year. Seeing kids develop mentally, physically and socially through four years of college is always a fun thing to see and being able to say that you had something to do with that makes it all worth while."
What do you miss most about being out on the field as opposed to the sideline?
"Well, back in the day, (I never thought that I would be saying those words!) I loved the competition! I loved playing in games every week and helping lead my team to victories... or at least good games! But now, I like being on the sidelines. I think just being around the sport and seeing soccer all the time is what I live for. I just love the game!"
What is you dream job and it does it have to be involved with soccer?
"Oh... what a great question! I have always wanted to open a craft and soccer center for kids, one where you in the morning you do crafts and then in the afternoon it's all about soccer. What could be better? (I was an art education major... can you tell?) I think that every kid during the summer would love a place like that. I love to do crafts!"
What are your plans for the summer?
"My plans include working lots of soccer camps, recruiting and getting married. Planning a wedding and coaching soccer is not an easy task and I am really looking forward to the day when I don't have to deal with wedding plans anymore. Oh, also my honeymoon, but other than that...nothing too exciting!"
What is your favorite drill you use during a practice or a camp session?
"My favorite game that I play with kids at camp is called Castle-2-Castle. It is designed for younger players but anytime that I have the college kids play in with the campers they get very intense. Former IU players Shannon Vnoucek and Kevin Robson are some of the BEST Castle-2-Castle players that I have ever seen. Basically, it is a competition between two very large teams and each team tries to get all of their soccer balls from one castle to another castle without the other team taking their own soccer balls. It's great because it deals with a lot of dribbling, passing and screaming kids. Kids all around just love this game!"
