Q&A with Amy Williamson
Jul 6, 2011 | Women's Beach Volleyball
July 6, 2011
Q: You're starting a brand new program at Tulane. Do you feel any pressure or are you excited to make it your own?
A: "There's really no pressure the first year. It's really a beginning program with everything. It's a brand new program and we're all excited and all of our girls are really excited to get out there."
Q: How has the transition from Associate Head Coach to Head Coach been?
A: "Our staff right now works really well together and I've been associate head coach for a year for the indoor team so Coach (Sinisa) Momic really gives all of us a lot of responsibility so its not that big of a change and I also have a very strong personality so it's something that I'm used to."
Q: Does any of your associate coaching training/experience transfer over for you or is this a completely different ballgame?
A: "A lot of it will transfer over. It's a different game as far as climate and the elements that you're dealing with. Obviously there's a different surface and it's a different style with the way you train. But I've done a lot of research and I have the experience of playing sand volleyball, so we feel pretty well prepared for the season."
Q: Where will you play?
A: "We're supposed to be building three sand courts on campus and hopefully we'll have access to Coconut Beach for large tournaments depending where Coconut Beach is relocated."
Q: What can fans expect to see during your inaugural season?
A: "Depending on how many schools we get to play us, I think just a different style of volleyball is very exciting. If you notice in the Olympics, everyone actually watches sand volleyball and it's one of the things that's most televised. I think that everyone will be very excited and it's a lot of fun to watch and its high energy, high intensity, and two people on the court, so it's a lot of movement."
Q: What are your short and long-term goals for the program?
A: "We'll have five doubles teams. Our short term goal is to identify two to three really strong doubles groups that will be able to beat the top double teams in the country and get strong four and five doubles teams. But ideally, now that I know there's going to be an AVCA National Championships, they're only going to take four teams and I think getting in right away the first year would be huge."
Q:If there was one thing you'd tell a prospective student-athlete about the program, what would it be?
A: "It's going to be intense, it's going to be competitive and we're going to win."
Q: What's your coaching motto?
A: "We strive for intensity and training. We really focus on developing the athlete mentally and physically."
Q: What are you most looking forward to?
A: "The different styles. I think the girls will really enjoy the change of not being inside all the time and they'll really enjoy competing with just one other person on their team and really being able to take charge. We have a couple middles that actually play some sand and are really competitive and I think this will really give them an outlet to not only play front row but be able to do all the skills. I think it'll be a lot of fun and our girls are pretty excited."
