Spartans Volleyball coach Cathy George and student-athlete Alyssa Garvelink talk with Michigan State University President Lou Anna K. Simon and Spartans Athletic Director Mark Hollis about the challenges and opportunities when playing in the nation’s toughest volleyball conference, the Big Ten.
“It’s nuts,” says Garvelink. “Night in and night out we’re playing some of the best teams in the country. It’s so competitive and so much fun.”
Garvelink says she likes how Coach George will take a chance on athletic players with raw talent and mold them. She says George helps the players learn life lessons from competing.
“She really cares about us as people more than players,” Garvelink adds. She says the family atmosphere at MSU attracted her to become a Spartan.
“The family feel here is different than a lot of places and separates us from other Big Ten schools,” says George. She adds that the increase in physical play is part of how the sport has changed over the years.
“The physicality in this league is ridiculously high. We play more like men. The ball is traveling at a much higher speed.”
MSU Today airs every Sunday afternoon at 4:00 on AM 870.