December 11, 2002
| --Sophomore volleyball player Kendra Felder will share her thoughts on the season, and other things, with us each week in AggieAthletics.com's player diary segment. December 11, 2002 I can't believe the volleyball season and half of my sophomore year is over. It definitely flew by so fast. We traveled to Los Angeles last week for the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament. I am first of all very thankful that we got into the tournament because we definitely had some trying times this season. Secondly, I am thankful that we were able to play the No. 1 team in the nation, USC. I know that sounds weird, like I wanted to lose early, but that most definitely is not where I am coming from. We were all pretty shocked at the bid we received to play Utah, then the winner of USC and University of San Diego. But after we got over that and decided to face the fate we paved for ourselves, it was an exciting adventure. We definitely played awesome against Utah to continue the tradition of winning the first round match for the 10th consecutive year. Next up was USC. I know not one person doubted what we could do, especially the coaches. They supported us and pumped us up and we wanted it so bad. But the cards didn't fall the way we wanted them to. The reason I am thankful we got to play the No. 1 team in the nation was so that we can get a hands-on experience and a look at the kind of team we need to become to be in their shoes. All my life, whatever game my team lost, no matter what sport, we lost to the champions. In basketball, [Corpus Christi] Calallen (my high school) made it to the final four (whoop!) and lost to Plainview in the first round, who won state. Last year we lost to Stanford in the elite eight, who then went on to win the national championship. And now, if USC wins, the curse strikes again! I'm kidding, it's not so much a curse, but it's definitely getting old. So, I came to the conclusion that the only way to fix this little situation was to become the champion. And what more motivation do we need other than the fact that the final four is in Dallas next year, so close to Aggieland! I am so pumped. Get ready for an exciting season next year. I just want to close with a huge thank you. Thank you first of all to the coaches who never gave up on us this season and kept pushing us to get better and closer as a team. We definitely grew as individuals and as a team. That leads me to thank the seniors, A.D. Achilefu and Julia Rex. They were so supportive and ready to get into practice and get better, which made everyone else pick it up. They are not only teammates, but also great friends. And I want to thank the rest of the team too, for not giving up on yourselves and each other. You guys always put a huge smile on my face! I want to thank our parents for the wonderful support and all the warming hugs after games. You guys were a huge help in Los Angeles! Thank you to the Maroon Club and all of our supporters. You all are so special to the team, always so caring. Thank you so much for the never-ending support! Everyone is such a blessing to me and the team, and we all thank you guys from the bottom of our hearts. I wish everyone a joy-filled Christmas holiday and may the Spirit of the Lord be with you always! God bless!
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