Aug. 11, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - With the start of the 2008 UCF volleyball season only weeks away, senior co-captain Stephanie Serna (San Antonio, Texas) has no doubt that she is ready to lead her young team to a successful and rewarding year. Serna recently sat down with the UCF Athletics Communications staff to discuss her role on the team and a year full of new faces, new places and a renewed energy.
This being your senior year, are you ready to take the reigns and lead this team?
"I am more than ready. (Jenny) Heppert and I have actually met individually, just me and her, and as senior captains we are more than ready to take this team where it needs to go. I think that this team does crave leadership, I know that is something that we have craved in the past and I think that Heppert and I can step up as seniors and say that this is our time. We're going to put this together and lay the foundation. We may not be as successful as we want to be and we may not make it to the (NCAA) Championships, but we will lay the foundation for this season and for others to follow. We want to be the seniors that our juniors can model after and want to pick up where Heppert and I left off and keep on laying the foundation. I'm more than ready to give this team what they need and play my role on the team."
What have you done over the summer to prepare for the season?
We have been working out Monday through Friday; six a.m. workouts are a little tough. With the team, we have been trying to create team dynamics by getting the team together as much as possible, especially because it is so new. We have been trying to spend outward time with the team, just talking to the new girls about how their summers are going so far and keeping everyone in tact. I have also been trying to work a lot of camps to get more open to the game and see it in a different light. I have been working a lot of camps with younger girls, because when you coach it helps you see yourself better as a player. So pretty much I've been working on team dynamics, working different camps and working on being a better leader."
How is the buzz surrounding this season different than any other season?
"It is amazing the buzz that Todd (Dagenais) has created. I never expected in a million years that he would be able to do this. But he has made UCF a spotlight of all the sports going on. I think people are most interested in what volleyball is going to do. This buzz is just amazing, especially surrounding the Stanford game. I know 50 people just off the top of my head that are going, so the buzz surrounding this year compared to other years is just not comparable. I am just glad that it is finally happening, we really do deserve it. Even though we may not have been that successful in the past, we deserve this recognition, especially with how hard we worked in the spring and summer."
Do you have any pregame rituals?
"As a team we love to put music on in the locker room and just dance. Right before the game we always write down our goals. I just like to look over my goals and burn them into my head, so when I am playing I can see those goals. I love trying to reach for something in a game. I know that if I reach my goals and everyone else on the team reaches their goals, there is no way that we cannot win. So, I just like to take a moment and burn in my head what I am trying to achieve in the game."
How has coach Dagenais changed the aura around UCF volleyball?
"He has made it unbelievably exciting. Not that I was never excited about it before, but he just makes me want to work so hard. When I am so tired, drenched with sweat and don't have any legs left, he gives me that extra tank of gas to keep going. He has nothing but respect for you and he is going to push you to the end because he knows the kind of player that you are. It just builds that excitement every day. I never dread going to Todd's practices because you know that you cannot walk out of there a worse player than you were. You're going to walk out a little bit better. He has just changed that aura into just pure excitement."
Season tickets for UCF's 2008 volleyball campaign at The Venue are currently available by calling the UCF athletics ticket office at 407-UCF-1000. The Knights open the 2008 season Aug. 29 at the Georgia Southern Invitational, before opening The Venue against No. 2 Stanford on Sept. 2. For the latest news on the Knights, log on to www.UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit www.UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.
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