Michigan State University Athletics
MSU NCAA Postgame Quotes: Illinois
12/8/2017 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Michigan State vs. Illinois - Post Game Quotes
December 8, 2017
Cathy George | Head Coach
Autumn Bailey | Jr. | OH
Brooke Kranda | Sr. | OH
Cathy George Opening Statement
First of all, a great experience and very happy to be advancing because Illinois is a great team. They really play their hearts out, so we are very fortunate to be moving on. I liked the effort, the fight that we had. I know that it wasn't the prettiest of matches, but it was one that we were able to kind of pull out at the right time. We fought hard, and that's really important. So, we're going to need that tomorrow, obviously. So, we're going to just get back to work and get ready for that.
Q. You've been at this for a little while, how satisfying is it to finally get to a regional final?
CG: It is nice to be to a regional final again. It's been a goal of this team. This is a great group of seniors and through redshirting and different things we ended up with quite a few in this class, as you well know. They came in as the sixth ranked recruiting class in the country, and they really have battled through. They were very young, and they were all playing and they're continuing to grow and grow. So, now to see that they set their minds last year in January, or I should say December, the day we lost to Arizona in the second round. They set their minds to being a special team and really going for this and pushing forward and trying to go as far as they possibly could. You can only control what you can control, but they put the work and the effort and the energy into being the best team they could be. So, because of that good things happen, and that's what happened. I am just appreciative to the team and all the people who have worked so hard and have gone the distance. That's where I'm at, so yes, it's satisfying.
Q. Autumn, if you could speak for the whole senior class, how satisfying is it for you guys to have this chance in your last year?
AB: Yeah, we're a super close senior class, the seven of us. I'm going to get emotional, but it means a lot.
Q. What was the difference in the second set?
CG: Well, we were making a lot of service errors, and we weren't serving very well in game two, and they (Illinois) were. They were doing a nice job picking away at our passers. We weren't staying in system. We weren't getting our offense cooking like we needed to, and they are too good of a blocking team, as you well know, one of the top in the country. For us to not be able to do that makes it difficult and puts a lot of strain on our pin hitters. We needed to settle down, obviously, ebbs and flows. I think Illinois is a really good serving team, and I thought they did a nice job really working it and working our passers and not letting them get settled in anywhere. I thought that was a great effort, but then we got our service game back a little bit and started making runs at points. But, it was really the team that was going to make a couple runs here and there. That's really what the difference was going to be.
Q. After so much drama and so many set points right at the end there, who did you want on the service line for that last point?
CG: Autumn Bailey. I knew she was a little fired up. I knew she was going to get back there and take a rip.
Q. What was going on, did the officials give a little warning or something?
CG: Yes, she got a little hostile, and we had to tell her to settle down a bit. But, she went back there. It's an emotional match. We really felt that there was a touch, and I think that's where it started in on. We just had to stay patient and stay the course there because how you respond to that, when things don't go your way, that's important. That's a big difference in how you play and move on. It was good to see us get back to the task at hand and answer with a couple of points.
Q. How worked up were you, at that point, to lose the point under review and to be able to put one through off their block in the next one?
AB: Yeah, I was definitely fired up. I was in the moment, and I knew I just had to refocus for the next point. So, I just took a deep breath and let it go.
Q. How difficult was it to settle your emotions when you got back to the service line?
AB: Yeah, I kind of just looked around and took a deep breath, like I said. Whatever happens, happens. I just wanted to go for it and something good came of it.
Q. What were you trying to do on that serve?
AB: Put up a tough ball over, really just get them out of system if I could. That's always the goal but, I'll take an ace if that's the outcome.
Q. Brooke, what was that moment like when you finally got that last point?
BK: The one that we thought was a touch, I was so ready to be storming the court then. Then, we were all standing there like, this was a lot more anti-climactic than we were all hoping for. And then, having to go back in after Autumn got that kill and just having her on the service line. I was little bit nervous, but then she just got an ace and I was just like, cool. That made that a lot easier. So, it was pretty exciting.
Q. How tough is it to beat that Illinois defense?
BK: It is really tough. Brandi Donnelly is a really good defender. You can hit it five feet away from her and she'll still come up with a perfect dig somehow. She's just really good all over the court.
AB: And the block is almost always set. It's just hard to find seems and holes in their defense.
Q. That last seven, eight points, it seemed choppy. Was there any flow to it?
CG: It was not a pretty match. I think that just speaks to battling and different things. It was not pretty, and it did go back and forth and it was choppy. There was not a smooth, clean play. It was just all over the place. Just like I said, we just had to gain control.
Q. In some ways, did that even add to the tension?
CG: Yeah of course, because you're used to playing clean. So, it got us out of sorts a little bit. It got them out of sorts a little bit. But, a lot of heart, a lot of people throwing their hearts into it, and that's all you can ask for as a coach. You want to see that they're going for it.
