Oct. 20, 2008
Ashley Lindsey
On any weight gained in the offseason: Maybe five pounds. But it varies every now and then because with all the conditioning we've been doing, my weight has been going up and down, and I'm trying to keep it consistent.
Coach (Goestenkors) wants me to get up to 170 [pounds], so I'm trying my hardest. But I'm just the type of person that can't gain weight and keep it there.
On having Erika Arriaran back from injury: I think (it will open up the post-game) because me and Erika were playing our freshman year, we would be on the same side. She would dish it to me and if I got (double-teamed) by her girl, I passed it back and she would end up shooting or passing it back in.
On the summer schedule: Coach G talked to our strength and conditioning coach (Logan Schwartz) over the phone sometimes. We did a whole lot of conditioning this summer: a lot of weight lifting, a lot of pickup [games] to see how we were with the new freshmen coming in here.
On being more acclimated with Coach Goestenkors than this time last year: I understand where she is coming from. She wants us to be up to speed. Since we've been doing a lot of conditioning, she expects us to do well in our traps, in our presses. She's basically wanting the same as last year, except a lot more. She wants us to learn from that and move on.
My confidence has been built up a lot by Coach G. She's a good coach and she knows how to say the right things to get you where you need to be. If I ever need her help, I know that she'll be there.
On her expected level of improvement this season: I think I've improved a lot since last year and this summer, I worked a lot. Coach G said that I might be able to shoot (three-pointers) this year. So I've been working on that and my ball-handling skills.
On being ready for official practice to begin: I've been ready since the summer.
On freshman post Ashley Gayle: She's like me, but she has a little more weight on her. She has long arms, she's a shot-blocker and rebounder. I played with her a little bit this summer and all we have to do is get her comfortable shooting, knowing the plays and stuff. She'll come through.
On the team's relationship off the court: We're all just like sisters. We're really close off the court. If we have time to hang out, we usually do.
Kristen Nash
On being more acclimated with Coach Goestenkors than this time last year: I think as time has gone on, we've gotten a lot more adjusted to Coach G's style. This past summer has been a lot more intense than it has normally been, but I think we're in the best shape we've ever been right now. The offseason went really well.
On adopting loftier goals this season: It's talked about a lot [in the locker room]. We want to win the Big 12 championship this year. We think we definitely can and we've got pretty much all of our players back, except for Erneisha (Bailey). We've spent a lot of time playing pickup [games] in the gym with each other and just really getting to know each other's size. I think this year we'll be a lot better.
On the freshmen: The freshmen are really neat. They've come in, they've gotten along with everybody, and they have chemistry with all of us.
On having Erika Arriaran back from injury: Of course having Erika back is going to be huge, shooting the three. We kind of missed some of that last year and now we have Erika back, so it'll really help.
On her personal goals for the season: My personal goal is just to help the team as much as I can, hopefully get some more playing time and be able to help the team rebounding, just do my best.
On how Coach Goestenkors' Olympic experience will benefit the team: I think it'll bring a lot. She told us when she got back that she learned a lot. She got a lot of new drills for us to do, so hopefully it'll be really helpful.
Ashleigh Fontenette
On how the older players have helped her adjust to college basketball: They really brought me in, took me under their wings because I was lost when I first got here.
The campus is huge, so any normal freshman would get lost trying to find their classes.
On adjusting to college course work: When school started, it was easier because we had been here [for the summer]. I already knew how the system worked and I got my work done.
On playing pickup games at Gregory Gym: It helped us get to know each other as a team more, playing against different people instead of each other. I think it was better because we got to know each other's strengths and weaknesses.
On describing her playing style: I like to run the break. I'm known for my speed, that's what everybody keeps saying.
My summer coach used to tell me, "Defense is everything." I took on to that.
On her expectations for herself and the team this season: I'm just going to know my role and do whatever I can do to help the team out. Hopefully we'll be making an impact in the Big 12.
On looking forward to any games in particular this season: I think every game is going to be a big game. We've been ranked number two in the Big 12, so people are going to be gunning for us. We're going to have to be ready to play for every game.
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