Athlete of the Month

This edition featuring Chelsea Fan

Athlete+of+the+Month

The Campanile: What position do you play?

Chelsea Fan: I play outside, which means I stand on the far left side and hit the ball.

TC: What would you say are your greatest accomplishments?

CF: Well, I went to Nationals two years in a row when I was in club and then I started on varsity as a freshman.

TC: Do you guys have any special routines to psych yourselves up before a game?

CF: Towards the beginning we like to visualize the game, talk about what our goals are and then scout out the other team. Then we dance around and sing some songs to get pumped up and get warm.

TC: What are some of the songs you sing?

CF: We like “Shots” by [LMFAO].

TC: What’s your policy on the demolition of the gym?

CF: I’m sad because we have to drive to Gunn to practice, and our practice times align directly with the traffic times, so it takes a while to get there. Also, they are the rival school so that’s really bad. But I also think it’s a good thing because our gym was really old and it was time for a new one.

TC: What do you contribute to the team?

CF: Well… I score a lot of points?

TC: List two things you don’t like about volleyball:

CF:

1. When you need to win a game, it contributes to school stress. You have to worry about volleyball on top of school and grades and we usually spend three hours practicing. It’s really hard for juniors and seniors.

2. I’m kind of short, especially for volleyball and especially for my position. Most of the girls are really tall and it’s hard for me.

TC: How do you compensate for your height?

CF: I work on my jumping. If I can jump higher than them, then my reach will be the same.

TC: What is your position on bendy straws?

CF: They’re magical things that can be used for drinking soup and other beverages. You can take two and use them like chopsticks, so straws are the only thing you need to consume food. But I only like the kind that have the little bendy part.

TC: What is the best thing about volleyball?

CF: I like winning!

TC: What is your favorite game or moment in volleyball?

CF: When you are winning, everybody on your side is really pumped up and working well together as a team. Having trust with your team is very important to me.

TC: List an improvement you have for the team.

CF: When we are losing, we need to focus more on getting our momentum going so we can get ahead. Compared to last year, a lot of the girls are more timid. It would really help if everybody on the team could be cheering because nobody is really loud and outgoing.

TC: How are you guys looking to improve this year?

CF: Overall we just need to work on building our team chemistry. We had seven seniors graduate and a lot of people got pulled up. We all get along. We need a couple more practices until we can really work well together.