NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional Press Conference Quotes
5/19/2011 12:00:00 AM | Softball
May 19, 2011
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - No. 2 national seed Alabama, Chattanooga, Memphis and Jackson State each met with the media Thursday during the NCAA Tuscaloosa Softball Regional practice day. The Regional starts Friday at 3:30 p.m. with Chattanooga and Memphis while Alabama and Jackson State play at 6 p.m.
ALABAMA QUOTES
Head Coach Patrick Murphy
Opening statement:
"This is a great opportunity for our city, our school and our softball team to host a regional. It has been a heck of a year. I was looking at some old newspapers from February, and it has three preseason All-SEC players in Whitney (Larsen), (Kayla) Braud and Kelsi (Dunne). They all got First Team All-Conference. Then it said that the Tide was picked to win the SEC, and we won the SEC. They pretty much have done their jobs all year long. We are in this position because they did what they were supposed to do this year. That is why we get to play at home and showcase our facility, our fans, and I hope that the three other teams have a good time and experience a true NCAA championship atmosphere here."
On what it means to have this game at home:
"I think that it is just a great opportunity to showcase what Division I softball is all about. To me, it is the stands, the fans, the teams, the atmosphere. This is what you play Division I softball for. We have had great crowds in the past and I hope it continues, but I think there is an added factor with the month layoff. We haven't been home in over a month, so hopefully it will be an energized, great crowd. I think all four teams will feel it."
On getting back on the field after the tornadoes:
"It is kind of normal. You're getting back in the routine. I know we told them back in the beginning of April that the best part of the season was coming up, postseason, and then right before Kentucky it was the postseason. School was cancelled, and we had that extra week off. A lot of them delivered backpacks and hats today to hundreds of kids in elementary schools. When they mix in a little bit of that and a little bit of softball, I think it is good for everybody."
#1 Kayla Braud, OF
On appreciating softball more now than last time off the field:
"I think you definitely learn not to take things for granted. Softball, we've been playing it all our lives. It becomes routine, something you wake up and play, but when you see something affect you and you don't get to play at home and something happens to your community, I think it makes you appreciate how lucky and blessed we really are to get to do what we love every single day. Under very terrible circumstances I think we learned a really good lesson never to take it for granted."
#20 Whitney Larsen, IF
On the ribbon in the right field:
"It's awesome. We were actually talking to Chris (Hildreth) the grounds keeper that actually did it. This community supports us so much and I know they are going to be really behind us and at the same time rally for our community. It's been the symbol the whole time since we've gone through this process. It means a lot to us. We have it on our jersey. It symbolizes how close we are as a community and as a team with our community."
On the last home series:
"It means a lot for myself and for Kelsi (Dunne). If we didn't get a chance to play here it would have been okay. You know I've had plenty of games on this field. I've been able to play in a regional and super regional here I think all three years before this. It wasn't something that was going to upset me but at the same time it kind of hit me. After we went home and canceled the Kentucky series that it could have possibly been the last time I played on this field. I would have been fine either way, but I'm really happy that I get one last weekend here."
CHATTANOOGA QUOTES
Head Coach Frank Reed
Opening statement:
"We are excited to be back in Tuscaloosa again since we have been here so many times. This is a great place to come, and they hold a nice regional down here. It is always great to be in postseason play, and it is great to bring this team from Chattanooga back, which is honestly one of the best teams we have had at least since I have been there. We look forward to playing well this week and representing our school."
On Michelle Fuzzard's hitting:
"Michelle came off a major ACL injury last year, and she had to redshirt. You never know what an athlete is going to do when they come back from an injury like that. Michelle knew that she had to work hard to get back. She is not only a hitter, but she is a pitcher too so she had to pull double duty to get back. That work ethic is what I think made her a success. I think that is one of the key things to her success was last year when she was able to stand in the dugout with the coaches, watch what was going on, see what we are seeing, understand what we are seeing, and what we are trying to get our athletes to do both offensively and defensively. Now she has been able to take that back and apply that."
On why this is the best team he has brought down here:
"We are one of the top hitting teams in the country, hitting over .400 in the conference, averaging eight or nine runs a game. Everyone in our starting lineup at one point was hitting over .300, so statistics prove for themselves, and that is throughout (the season) not just conference play. We have come here in the past with great pitching, which has probably been our strength, and we feel that we have as good of pitching as we have had in the past. That complements our hitting and defense."
#15 Michelle Fuzzard, RHP/IF
On being selected to participate in the Tuscaloosa Regional again:
"When we first were looking at where we were going to go we were thinking anywhere but Tuscaloosa, but I think there is definitely an advantage for us coming down here because we have been here so often."
On the atmosphere at Rhoads Stadium:
"The atmosphere here is unlike any other in the country. You have hardcore fans here, and it is exciting to play under the lights with fans like that. It gets our people riled up too. It is really cool to go off that atmosphere."
On whether or not the team has a chip on its shoulder from its previous appearance in the Regionals:
"I think we have more to prove this go-around, especially having some letdowns the previous two times we were here. We do not want to go two and out again. I feel like we can play with anyone here. We hung with Georgia when we played them. You put us up against any BCS school, I think we will have a good showing."
#23 Tiffany Baker, IF/OF
On the advantage to playing in Tuscaloosa again:
"Memphis and Jackson State do not know the field as well as we do. We know all the little crevices probably just as well as the Alabama players. It gives you a back-home kind of feeling."
On how the atmosphere can affect how you play:
"Being a corner player, you are going to get talked about the entire game. You have to realize that is what is going to happen here. Knowing that going in, you have to block it out if you are going to be successful. I think it is going to be different for the other two teams because they have not experienced this atmosphere."
On teammate Michelle Fuzzard being the best hitter here:
"I would put Michelle up against anyone in the conference and in the southeast. She is really disciplined and patient, and she never gets frustrated. She never shows her emotion on the field. You will never know if she has had a successful day or an unsuccessful day."
MEMPHIS QUOTES
Head Coach Windy Thees
Opening statement:
"We are ecstatic to be in the postseason. This is our sixth year as a program, and I was able to be on the front side of. I have gotten to see everything built and all the players recruited. I spent the first 48 hours with the players by myself because we did not have assistant coaches. I have had some amazing assistants throughout the years, but it is all about the players. They are what took it to this level. I could not be more proud of this team."
On volunteering in Tuscaloosa this morning:
"It has been tragic throughout all the South. When we found out this was our regional, I knew we should do something. We knew we did not have practice in the morning, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity for our team to go do something positive and something needed. They need a lot of help to distribute and organize the donations. It was so great to help out, and the people there were just amazing."
On how the team is prepared based on its play in Conference USA:
"I cannot imagine being in a conference that prepares me better for postseason. The pitching in our conference is ridiculous. It is tough week in and week out. The teams at the bottom of our conference have beaten teams from the Big Ten, Big 12 and the SEC. It is a really strong conference, but because our schools are named after cities and not states, we may not get the recognition we deserve. We have some amazing coaches, and they do a great job. We all work hard with what we do."
#10 Heather Mott, IF
On how things have changed in the program from when she first started:
"I came the second year of the program. We were traveling to another field to play since we didn't even have our own softball complex. We got the softball complex, in the third year, and it was cool to have a home to play on. We took the program to a new level. It is really exciting this year just to be at the regional. We are happy that we have accomplished that."
On how the team has approached the regional:
"Honestly, I think that we have approached the regional just like we would approach every other game. We don't have to think about the pressure. We are here and everybody that is here is a good team. We just have to go out there and play relaxed and just do what we do, play like Memphis softball, and go out there and have fun. We have wanted this from the start of the program, so just to be here is an incredible experience and an incredible accomplishment for our program."
#7 Carly Hummel, RHP
On how things have changed in the program from when she first started:
"For me personally, I came during year five of the program, so it had kind of been around for a while. I had met a couple of the girls on my way here to Memphis. I was so happy and so ready to come in not only because we were on the rise and the underdog, but also because every single one of us girls wanted this more than anything. If you talk to anyone of us, we have had the same goal: to put Memphis on the map somewhere. For years I had never even heard of Memphis, and then finally to be part of a growing program where people know who we are now, it is so amazing."
On how the team has approached the regional:
"I think we approached it with excitement, from the moment it happened. When we finally realized that Memphis was in, it was an amazing feeling, especially to know that the person to the left and right of you felt the exact same way. We were jumping on top of each other, crying and screaming. I think more than anything we are excited and thankful to be here. We worked hard, we worked so hard this fall to be where we are at. I think that we just all came in excited, and we are ready to do it."
JACKSON STATE QUOTES
Head Coach Rick Fremin
On the circumstances on which he took over the program:
"That's been a pretty hot topic throughout the season of course. I would say that to take over any program three weeks before the first game would have been tough for any coach. That first month was a little trying, with a new system and taking over that time of the year, but I just kept telling them, telling the ladies that there was a plan, believe in the system, and have a desire to be a champion in all facets of the game, both on and off the field. A lot of people question the move because I left a very dominate, nationally recognized program, but I felt that I did all that I could do there other than win a national title."
On the atmosphere:
"I know what the environment is like. I have shared the environment with the players, so it is not a 'wow' factor when they get here. I felt that, throughout the entire season, I have done a good job of informing them prior to an event of the environment. This will be different, just like any other venue. At the same time, we have two goals for the tournament, and that is to out-hustle every team we play and to not be the first team to go home."
On the team's style:
"My nature is to be very aggressive as a coach. Wendi Reed is a prime example. I think she had eight stolen bases last year, and now she is leading the country with 55. Do we play in a lower league with maybe a less talented catcher? Yes, in most cases, but at the same time, Wendi Reed is a very talented individual that I believe can play for anyone in the country. She is a gamer and can flat out play. Farren Wright does a phenomenal job at third and has great arm strength. Those are our two leaders, and our team goes as they go. They do a great job of leading the program."
#12 Wendi Reed, IF
On playing in front of such a large crowd:
"We need to be sure to stay focused and not look at the crowd. We need to do what we need to do on the field and not let the crowd get into our head."
On what to expect from Jackson State:
"I feel like what you expect from every team is what you should expect from us. We are all the same age. We put on our uniforms the same, and we tie up our cleats the same. Anything they can do, we can do as well."
#2 Farren Wright, IF
On playing in front of such a large crowd:
"Staying focused is a big thing, whether the crowd is big or small. It is going to be a major part of playing in front of the fans they have here at Alabama. It is exciting to get to play in front of this large a crowd."
On what to expect from Jackson State:
"People should not expect for us to lie down. Alabama is at the top in the rankings, and us coming in as an underdog gives us something to prove. That is what we are going to come in and do. We have speed. We are very versatile, and do it all just like any other team. You should not expect anything less."
On what it means to be in the NCAA Tournament:
"It is an honor to be here. We looked forward to this at the beginning of the season. To actually make it here is great. We want to show everybody what we can do and what we have. This is what you dream about."
