The following is a series of questions in longform interview format of former University of Delaware Women’s Head coach, Kateri Linville, prior to her 7-10 2019 campaign.
By Dylan Phillips
Newark-
Coach Kateri, before we talk about your schedule, let’s first talk about your roster for this upcoming 2019 season. What are you most excited about the world to learn and see about your 2019 team?
I think for us, I the most exciting things coming into this season is the strength of our overall team. I think one thing we’ve talked about in the preseason is that we’re going to get things done as a team. We graduated a talented group and we have some strong returners with a lot of experience so I think we’re just gonna build momentum off of team play this year
(Mark Campbell/University of Delaware)
Now youmentioned that you graduated a lot of people and you lost a lot of those key starters from last year like Becky Gohsler and goalkeeper Taylor Carpentier. How have you adjusted to replacing those players?
Becky was a key contributor in the midfield for us and I think we have some rising stars in the junior class that have experience, that are gonna do a good job. We also have 11 freshman that came in this year that had a great fall so we’re looking forward to them getting game experience and building some momentum across the year and adding some depth to the unit. The midfield is a place of growth for us. Having a lot of people who can contribute those points collectively is going to be a strength of ours. That competition is always positive when you’re getting ready for the season.
You already play in a challenging conference and then you add on teams like Penn and Georgetown to your schedule, what do you hope your team learns and gains from playing such a tough schedule?
(Courtesy of Delaware athletics)
We’ve always had a tough schedule. We thrive under competition and our teams really enjoy those rivalries and the opportunities to play great competition in conference. They’ve been on our schedule in the past and they’re teams that our teams always get fired up to play.
Last year James Madison won the entire tournament, what has it been like seeing your conference gain more respect? Especially from the perspective that you played in the conference as a player and now as head coach. What does it mean to have the CAA to succeed on a national scale?
It’s gritty. There’s more parity than some conferences in the past, but the games growing so fast and there’s so much talent across the country that you really can’t overlook any opponents and we’ve always taken pride in the CAA. We’re looking to separate ourselves. The conference the last few years has been top three in the country. There’s a lot of confidence in our coaches and teams that we can challenge great competition. I was thrilled to see JMU make the run they did, it inspires all of us to just keep getting better.
As you guys gear up for the spring season, what are some of the goals that you’re telling your team to look forward to?
The big picture for us is ‘everyday is the best day to be the best that we can be,’ individually and as a team. Our strength is in our team process and our main focus everyday is winning that day. We’re focusing on staying present and getting better in the moment.