The Minnesota volleyball program welcomes three transfers who will compete for the Golden Gophers during the 2009 season. Gophersports.com will be interviewing all three student-athletes (Taylor Carico, Jess Menden and Megan Wilson) during the summer as part of a series of interviews leading up to the first day of practice on Monday, Aug. 10. Gophersports.com sat down with Wilson to talk about her first season with the program, and what she is looking forward to as a fifth-year senior at Minnesota.

Gophersports.com: What are the deciding factors that led you to play for Minnesota for your fifth year, and what are some of the experiences that you are looking forward for this year?

Megan Wilson: “Once I was done with my fourth year at the University of Missouri some doors opened and a different opportunity came up about playing a fifth year in volleyball. I ended up coming to Minnesota and talked to a couple of the coaches. After my visit here and going through four years of college and the volleyball experience, I knew what I wanted. It was really fun visiting the University of Minnesota, and I decided to trust my gut. It was that gut feeling that I had that Minnesota was the place for me. It was because of the experiences that I had, and the things that I had a chance to see that I knew it was exactly what I wanted to do. Also, this program fit my personality and how I wanted to take the approach to finish out playing my volleyball career.”

GS: What are the factors on the court and outside of volleyball that led you to Minnesota?

MW: “The opportunity was laid out perfectly in front of me. Obviously, Minnesota is a very strong volleyball school, a program that has great potential, high goals and that fit along with what I want to do in volleyball.  As I was looking more and more into the decision about where I want to go to school, there were a couple of graduate programs that stood out to me and the University of Minnesota was one of them. Through the application process and getting that figured out I was accepted, and I knew these doors were opening for a reason. All of this ended up falling in place for a reason and I went with what came along and I just allowed things to happen.”

GS: What are you planning to study in graduate school?

MW: “I am getting my Masters in Sports Management”

GS: There is a very interesting dynamic that the team has with two seniors that are transfers. How do you mix bringing the leadership and experience of a fifth-year senior, along with being new player on the team this year?

MW:  “It has been a very interesting process trying to figure out where I fit in and figuring out a whole new system on how the program is run. I think the best way to offer leadership to this team is through learning from the experience I have gained. I can bring that experience and maturity to the team on and off of the court. I think that I have learned a lot, and been through so much in my career that I can bring stability to the team and also a support system to the new girls coming in because I have been through almost every situation. I do have to adjust to being a new player in this program, but I also feel that I have a lot of college experience. I feel that I can really be a leader in that aspect. I know my stability and knowledge of what is going on can help, but I also need to be humble enough to know that while I might be a senior on this team everything that I do must be earned and it is not just given to me because I am a senior.”

GS: How much opportunity have you had to interact with the other players on the team in terms of getting to know them before fall camp?

MW: “I have had a lot of opportunities to interact with the girls because we work out with one another every day in the morning and in the afternoon we play with and against each other. We have had a lot opportunity to know each within volleyball, but with my graduate program I had a class for the first two weeks we were working out. The class was so intense that I didn’t have an opportunity to interact with the girls outside of those workout times. After the class had ended, I celebrated the end of that class with the girls. They are very accepting and understanding about what is going on in life, and the changing that is taken place. That made my transition very easy. We are still working on off the court interactions because I am starting to get my time back now that my class is over. However, I feel like I know the girls on the team very well just through getting to talk to them through workouts and also on the court.”

GS: When did you get situated here at the University Of Minnesota?

MW: “I started school on June 15, and I have been here for four weeks. Everything is relatively new to me, but the girls have taken me in and have been very accepting. I feel like I have been here forever.”

GS: Talk about some of the connections you have with former Golden Gopher Kyla Roehrig prior to coming here.

MW: “Kyla and I played on the same club team back in high school. Through the recruiting process when I came up here she was my host. That helped me out a lot because it made me feel comfortable. I knew I could ask questions that would help me understand the insides of this program. Kyla having that connection with the program also helped me out a lot because it was comforting to know that there is another girl from my area that knew what I was looking for. It also made a good impression on me that she played her for four years and loved the experience.”

GS: How excited are you to begin the 2009 season and your Minnesota career in your home state of Nebraska?

MW: “That was one of the most excited parts of this whole process. Being able to go home and play one last time in front of friends and family will be a lot of fun. Growing up and watching Nebraska volleyball, and knowing the type of support that they receive from the fans and also playing in front of family that might not be able to travel up to Minnesota to see me play is exciting. I get goose bumps when I think about it.”

GS: What are some of your past experiences playing in your home state of Nebraska, while at Missouri?

MW: “I have had some of the best matches of my career in the state of Nebraska. I think that I know what to expect and how the fans are going to be. I think it is more of a motivator than an intimidator to play there. I just use the energy that the fans bring, pull it in and use that on the court. Some of my best memories are being out there on the court where the fans are so loud that you can not here your teammates out there. You get caught up in the moment and play with all of your heart because all the fans are cheering not for you but for the sport of volleyball.”.

GS: What are some of the goals for the team and as an individual this year? Also what some of the things that you can bring to team on the court?

MW: “It is hard to talk about goals, but I think that my goal coming into a new team is a little bit different because I am in a different position. My goal for this team is to bring that leadership that I know I have because of past experiences. I also want to continue to be that overly energetic person through practice whether if I do get the opportunity to play or not. I want to be that person that can also always be relied on. I want to be a communicator and that energizer bunny, giving 110 percent in everything that I do in practice or on the bench and everything that I do.”

GS: Have you always been an energy type of player, and someone who consistently brings that to the court?

MW: “Obviously I can bring that along with having the ability to bring the smile on the court to the girls. They know that I am always there whether we are doing something serious in practice or I am being goofy to lighten the mood. Hopefully they will know that they can rely on me for that. It took time to establish that at Missouri because I had to build that trust, but I know how to play that role now. I am so much more experienced in that and I want to be that reliable source that the girls can lean on.”