Volleyball Newcomer Q&A: Brooke Slusser
8/23/2021 2:33:00 PM | Volleyball
Setter – Denton, Texas
On her start in volleyball
"I was playing soccer and I got burned out, so my mom told me I had to do something. My friends started playing on this rec volleyball team, so my mom made me play. I didn't even want to play volleyball when I first started, but it kind of stuck. I think I was in third grade. Right after I started, I fell in love with it immediately. I think I was just natural. It came easier to me than the other sports I tried and so I just stuck with it."
On playing in college as a goal
"I always dreamed of getting to play D1 in college ever since I was little."
On the turning point in the goal becoming reality
"Probably when I first started to get letters in. That's when it really hit me that I could actually play volleyball in college. I didn't realize how it would start or how I could start the process, but then when I started getting a lot of letters of recruitment it really started to hit me that this is a reality."
On what she was looking for in a college
"It really didn't matter to me what part of the country I was in. The thing I was looking into the most was just the coaching and the environment I would be in when I got there. The coaches here were always very open with me about everything, so it just made it easy to kind of fall in love with the school."
On Alabama coming into the picture
"I'm pretty sure I got an email from them asking for a call just to talk and see what I think about it. It was like a normal recruiting call. Out of any other school it all happened pretty fast. I think I had five or six calls with them before I committed, so it did happen faster than I would have thought, but I just knew it was the right place for me to be. I didn't even come on a visit. I just came to two camps and I really loved the campus and everything about it. You could just tell that Lindsey [Devine] is an amazing coach, so I knew it was the right place.
On the adjustment from high school to college
"I did have one class in the summer, but so far going through that process the first month I was here was made easier by all the resources we have as student-athletes. The coaches are super supportive and helpful with not just volleyball, but off the court as well. Everyone has made the transition a lot easier than I expected.
"On the court, I think the hitters are definitely stronger than in club volleyball. It's different playing with girls at this age because in high school girls are still developing. In college, you're playing against girls in their twenties and I'm still eighteen, so the older girls are so much stronger. I had to change up my defense and get used to the speed of the ball, so it was definitely an adjustment."
On her value as a teammate
"I hope that everyone can rely on me to always bring energy. Whether it's on or off the court, just knowing that I can be there for them to lift them up in a hard game where we're struggling or being able to be the leader they need in whatever spot they need me in."
On her personal and team goals for 2021
"A personal goal for me is probably just to improve my setting and becoming a better player overall with the girls I have around me. Just pushing myself to get better. For a team goal, we want to win the SEC and make it to the NCAA tournament this year."
