Latest / Set 6: The Official MLV Podcast / Episode 017 | Vegas is Back: Inside the Return of the Thrill
Transcript
- Mike Moline: This week what happens in Vegas is on the Set Six Podcast. We've got all things from the Vegas thrill announcement that they're returning to MLV. We've got interviews with Kendall White, Berkeley Oblad, Lindsay Vanderweight, and head coach Rachel Morris. Lock in. This is the Set Six Podcast. What's going on? How are we doing, everybody? Welcome to another episode. It is, of course, the Set 6 podcast. This is, I believe, episode 17. I'm Severin Lavenstein. You are listening to the official podcast of Major League Volleyball. And with me is my co-host for today and Set 6 correspondent Jenna Rosenthal. Jenna, how we doing? ⁓ I'm doing peachy keen. Although I have to interrupt, have you been working here for 17 weeks? You know, something crazy like that, even before that with the I think I think the podcast has existed in some space after I started. So yeah, 17 weeks is crazy. That is crazy. Both seems like a flash in almost an entire eternity. But you know, I I I couldn't agree anymore. That does not dim my enthusiasm for all things volleyball and this podcast. Please like, comment, subscribe. We are on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, and all of the amazing places that you can get your podcasts. Please before you listen to this episode, go listen to episode 16, which was our On Location from Ren episode with Taylor Lanfair, Avery Carlson, Peyton Caffrey, and Carly Snyder. Today we are talking all things Vegas Thrill. And first we're gonna hit the news, then we're gonna talk a little bit about the Vegas announcement, and we're gonna share the interviews and then wrap up the show. And Jenna's gonna help me do that. So, Jenna, first, ⁓ I mean, let's just talk about well we'll we'll talk about Vegas in a second. Let's actually hit the news with you first. And one of the things I want to talk about is ⁓ something that got a little bit more of an announcement, but was also kind of previously announced. ⁓ but that is ⁓ what is now the FIVB World Cup, ⁓ rebranded from the World Championship to the World Cup in 2026. And they have announced that for the first time in history, I'm reading from the FIBB release here, a volleyball world championship will be staged in the USA and Canada, setting the stage for an unforgettable celebration of the sport and a buildup to the Olympic Games for Los Angeles 2028 and the final rounds. of the Women's World Championship twenty twenty seven will be held at the Honda Center and O C vibe at Anaheim, California, with four additional host cities across the USA and Canada to be confirmed for the pool phase in the round of sixteen. But first, Jenna, let's talk a little World Cup and just what was your reaction to this ⁓ being being having its home in in Anaheim for that that final round stage? I mean that's Fantastic. I remember coming up, especially when I was playing, you you want to catch the World Cup. It's the best of the best. You w it's the best of the best. You want to watch that. But a lot of times the broadcasts are completely out of whack because it's you know, playing live in Europe, playing live in Asia. So I think it's more signs in our direction that the volleyball momentum in this country is moving. And when your international governing body sees it, that's so awesome. Of course I'm a little jealous that California always gets all the volleyball love, but It's all right. I'll hold it down in the Midwest, as you're seeing the Midwest, and hopefully we'll get some of those alternative host cities announced soon. Because I w I I'd like to see a Chicago. Used to be in Hoffman Estates a while ago, that was of Nations League. ⁓ where else have we gone? Shreveport? Not sure I'm super big on Shreveport, but I wanna see FIB V holding it down in the West a little bit more. I've seen interesting locations before for F I V B and and Orsega tournaments. Well ⁓ a couple times West Virginia was was one of them as well. But I'm always curious how California does kinda when you're talking about that with you know, Midwest always seems like the big hub for everything. But I you know, Honda Center's right down the street from me and I love that venue. I think it's a good venue too, but it's like can you get all of the fans in from ⁓ the Midwest and from you know other parts that that aren't necessarily the California ⁓ area of things where everybody's all invested from from the West Coast standpoint. ⁓ but I I love it. I think it's a trip to LA. ⁓ boo hoo, poor me. Not not the worst place to be no matter when they're having it. ⁓ but I I think especially getting that getting this to be hosted to in the US is great exposure and then also with Canada as well and how the US obviously already has a bid for LA twenty eight and then with Canada ⁓ feeling like, well, because there's an an extra not an extra slot open, because they don't have to kind of go through the US in the continental kind of stages for a ⁓ f for a bid, it's kind of like US is already in, you can kind of get your own in a different way. ⁓ I think it's gonna be huge for for Canada to have a kind of an opportunity. Maybe not necessarily on on this stage, but obviously in the lead up plenty of chances to be able to make it. ⁓ totally. The that qualification system is absolutely unreal and any more opportunities to keep, you know, diversifying that representation is so huge. I can't wait to see if we'll see any of our girls playing. Cause we've got athletes, what, ⁓ obviously team USA, we've got some Canadians, Thai, Japan. I think Germany has a really good run at getting a slot in the World Cup. ⁓ Belgium too, possibly Serbia always perennial. We've got a lot of fun names ho running around and I can't wait to see more of them in our league and on these international stages. I agree. Plenty of possible MLV representation ⁓ to to possibly be there. So looking forward to that as well. ⁓ Jenna, do we want to move on to the Vegas announcement and the the the full reveal that the b the Vegas thrill are back in MLV, going to be competing in twenty twenty seven. ⁓ let's just start with, I mean, why why was now the right time for Vegas to come back? I think I know the answer, but I'd like your perspective on it. I mean, Vegas went on their little hiatus. ⁓ I think a lot of times from the volleyball perspective, we can really focus on the court stuff and ask why what was happening from the court side. But unfortunately, I think in seasons one and two there were some front office questions that needed answering. And it was through this commitment to getting the then PVF off the ground that kept the thrill, you know, incorporated as part of that inaugural ⁓ God, you're fact checking me, that inaugural eight. eight teams in those initial seasons. I've obviously having to go on hiatus season three, but when you start putting some of those pieces in place, it's it's time to come back. It's like they said, they're not, they're not gone forever. They're just taking a break. And a lot of times you hear that and you're like, ⁓ put it in the can. It's not coming back. But it's so amazing to see it back to life. Personally, I'm a little disappointed that they didn't go with the Elvis Viva Las Vegas thing. I think that's corny. Can producer Mike put that as part of our intro because I think it's hilarious, but that's why I'm not in branding. But I'll have to go get the the white suit, the white Elvis suit to to redo the intro, honestly, for that. But no, I I I think ⁓ Yeah, right. No one wants to see that. I think it's a I think it was I mean that now being the right time as you look at the rest of the the league and and how how many expansion teams that we're getting. And I think that obviously speaks to the health of the league and and why, you know, that's that obviously makes sense to kind of join the the g the gro the growth and the expansion to ⁓ to twelve and then you know I just expanding. Obviously, you know, twelve, fourteen, sixteen, you know, you want to be in, but I think it's really important to catch that wave now. Not saying they're the twelfth, but to be a part of that twelve in this new look MLV, that's super important. Can I cut you off? Keep going. No, no, no, totally. That I I absolutely agree. And then to be able to kind of go through a little bit of a refresh while also being still having that heritage of being one of the originals, I think is a perfect combination. And then, you know, there's still I I think again, to your point with the expansion, there's still so much talent already there to pick from versus maybe if you came in a couple years later, that would be a more difficult challenge, ⁓ just given the nature of more teams in the league at that point. But I I I just I think the setup is great. Never mind how good the logo looks and how great the the rebrand looks, but I mean that Lee's family forum is fantastic. You can tell that there's a really ⁓ good volleyball community there and you'll hear that in the in some of the interviews that we have from today. but I think I think the foundation's there and that's probably why it was there to start. But ⁓ I th I think, you know, again with the new investment as well from from Michael, I think it's i it it makes sense if that makes if if that makes sense. Yeah, and you can't be gone too long. Like like you alluded to in those conversations with ⁓ the athletes, Berkeley especially, since she's local to Henderson. ⁓ she was saying how a lot of people asked about the team, missed the team. There's still that memory in town of the Vegas thrill, despite them being off the court for a year. And that's really special. But at the same time, you can't ask a local sports community to wait for you forever, you know, twenty four hour news cycle, you know, you're forgotten. The minute you're not present, you have to come back. You have to capture that momentum that still exists. And it looks like they've done that perfectly. We'll see if they stick to landing, which I'm sure they will, but Jenna, how will how will Rachel Morris be a good coach? I'm so glad you asked about Rachel Morris because I really, really liked her interview. ⁓ we keep speaking about the level of volleyball talent in the United States and how we keep finding these really fantastic gems as they come up from college. And the same thing applies to the coaches as well. A lot of times there's this huge amount of super talented coaches and you know, maybe they're doing fantastic work in, you know, isn't say in Indiana or say, you know, some other schools that don't always get all the giant accolades of Russ Rose at Penn State and Mary Wise of Florida and ⁓ John Cook of Nebraska, you know, these huge, you know. Huge celebrities in the coaching world, but there's so many incredibly talented folks day in and day out in the trenches, trenches being a little dramatic, doing the good work. And I'm so glad we were able to identify Rachel. ⁓ I think Ruben made a great pick. ⁓ her work in Indiana's been fantastic and giving her the us this opportunity to take her craft to the next level. I'm so stoked. Plus, you can see how well Alicia Glass Childress did with ⁓ you know, a young younger female coach, you know, breaking into this landscape. Her team's performed fantastic, phen phenomenally. Huge deep runs, a team that really believed in themselves and each other. I want to see more of that, hands down. Yeah, I think that that transition from and I'm gonna use air quotes, you know, young coach, because, you know, I I think sometimes when they talk about that, it's almost like a diss on themselves. Like and I totally agree that it's it's different from those kind of established coaching stars. But, you know, think it's a great thing to have coaches who are not so far removed from playing. Like Rachel was joking with me off camera for the interview. She was just at six man with some of those players. And then to, you know, be right into coaching was was great. But I just think the combination of being young, hungry, kind of fiery like her players was the sense that I was getting. And then you know directly from the college game being in it where obviously we have a great pipeline to those college players in that style. ⁓ not to say that that the the more established kind of ⁓ MLV coaches are more removed from that coaching style, but it's it's gonna be different, right? And we talk about that a lot of like the the different merging paths to reach the same ultimate goal of winning. One of them being more like coming from that college coach background, which is maybe a little bit different than your international coach background, I think is totally fine. I also wanted to ask you too. I think it's really neat to k kind of hear her talk about how she sort of splits Her her her systems, if you will, you know, her fiance runs part of it, ⁓ and and she runs part of it. And and if you've had any experience with that with coaches where you found, you know, there there are benefits to coaches kind of divvying up the workload among their staff versus the one be-all end all answer. ⁓ but before before you say that, I just think that those different combinations about her style and her perceived style, I think are gonna be really big benefits to her. But please, Jenna, tell me about what you've seen from coaches who kind of divide and conquer like that. I'm gonna put a pin in that for just a second and spin off the back onto the the young coach concept. It's not necessarily a college thing. I think because this transition from college to pro really marks a difference in the dynamic, becoming more it's more of a colleague. Like ultimately the coach is still your boss. You still have the final say, but the power imbalance dynamic shifts a little bit once you're all adults and you're all professionals. And I think Rachel being that relatable piece. You know, she'd be obviously the coach is always part of the team, but it'll continue to mesh further and pres produce some great results. But to your question about coaches dividing and conquering strategy, we've seen that in I I hate always comparing volleyball to other sports, but I hope at least some of our listeners out there, you know, are a big nerds about football or baseball. You've got offensive coordinators and defensive coordinators. That's not That's not an earth-shattering revelation. And the same occurs with volleyball. ⁓ just because it's not separate teams coming on and off the court to play offense and defense doesn't mean you don't have an offensive phase and a defensive phase, right? So I think it makes perfect sense ⁓ how that gets divided out between those two. ⁓ I do think it's hill I I I wonder though. Hypothetical question, Severin. ⁓ Rachel and Kevin are not the only partners duo in the league. So do you think Vegas Thrill versus Atlanta vibe counts as a double date or no? Well what what if what if it's back to back and then immediately afterwards they play ⁓ indie? Then what? ⁓ my god, you're so right. How did I forget? No, it's all good. There's there's so many of those ⁓ those combinations. I think it's Can we do a volleyball power couple power ranking? ⁓ my god, I'd be scared to put anybody above the others, but yes. I think we'd have to. I think I think we we do to That's whole point of having a record, right? I want I want like ⁓ you know, in my head, like just a couple sit like sit down series, you know, like who's most likely to and like that kind of stuff. And you know, just this kind of a fun social series we've gotta do with all of them. God bless them though, frankly. I I phe that that must be real love, man. Living, working, traveling. Yeah, you gotta you gotta really not get sick of the other person at all. God bless. Sorry, that's a tangent. But yes, I think splitting into offensive defensive coordinating is very common. Sometimes you'll see it described as ⁓ setting, setter, hitter, blocker, digger, but it's all speaking to the same thing. ⁓ pe like obviously, even as a player, you have a better, stronger suit, like middle blocker. I know a lot more about blocking than digging. So I think in the game naturally splits in a lot of ways, which is why I think the outside hitter is just the most fantastic position ever, because they actually manage to do both and do both well. But enough on my own insecurities for that one. Jenna, what was your reaction to the team? Obviously not everybody has been revealed yet. You and I know everybody who's gonna who's on this team, but we'll we're ⁓ gonna keep that secret as long as ⁓ Vegas would like to. ⁓ but just with the players that were there at the announcement and who has been revealed so far, w what what'd you make of the roster and its construction? Okay, I'm s I'm calling all these tangents. You're fantastic question, Severin. See and speaking to the viewers directly. We told you it was gonna be fine. They're like, ⁓ my God, Vegas hasn't signed players. It's gonna be terrible. Guys, we told you it was gonna be fine. And la we magic. Just like we're telling you DC is gonna be fine. Don't report It's all fine, guys. Everything's fine, please. These aren't insider secrets, but we're trying to give you as much as we can while respecting marketing and branding. What the big big wigs in the head shed have to say. ⁓ but yeah, no, I was really excited by this group. ⁓ obviously the re those returning to Vegas Thrill from season two. Those make a lot of sense. Berkeley Oblad, Kendall White, Lauren Jardine. Very excited. They clearly had a connection to Vegas. And after their little hiatus elsewhere, I think they're bet ready to bring lessons back to this team and to pick up where they left off. But otherwise, I think it's a really, really balanced group. ⁓ I love a lot of the offensive firepower that ⁓ Coach Morris has assembled. I think that really speaks to her strengths she's taught she's talked about as an offensive coordinator. And at the same time, you'll see it in Lindsay's interview. ⁓ they're all super fiery, super passionate. ⁓ Kendall is, what did Kendall say? She's like, You will see us coming. You will absolutely know when we take the court. So I really enjoy, I want to see what that loud, aggressive style turns into on the court. I think that was the biggest thing. I, you know, to pick up right where you just left that. I that's that's the biggest thing that I noticed when I was there in the room is I was like, these are these are some big personalities. And I want to see that. on the court as well. I think too, as we're gonna talk about in a little bit, of just the the potential of of creating more rivalries in this league. I I want to see that fiery nature come out. Obviously I never want to see anybody, you know, showing anyone up on the other side of the net, but I want to see them get loud after You want to see talking in volleyball? That's a bigger question. I kinda do. I kinda do. I I I and I know that some some are like, you know, that's not really in the spirit of the game. I understand that. ⁓ but look like w when you're I don't know if this is the same for you, when I'm scrolling Twitter and I'm looking for clips of, you know, what what happened at V and L, what's going on in in the college game, be it men men's or women's, what are the clips that most often pop ⁓ against your feet? It's it's you know it it's Jordan Lucas being a little sassy, it's it's ⁓ you know, Jake Haynes going crazy on the other side of the net. I just named two two men's clips. But what I mean, you know, like I think we want to see that competitive fire and that competitive nature. And it comes out in different ways too. Like when we talked to Leah Edmund a couple episodes ago, you know, she talks about getting fiery and, you know, Carly Snyder said last week sometimes she puts on her tiger face. So we get it. But I I I am curious if we can foster that a little bit more. I think so, definitely. ⁓ I feel like in volleyball a lot, you're directing that fire back at your teammates to hype your teammates back up rather than screaming at somebody through the net. So As an old schooler, I'll always want more fire directed back at the huddle, not at your opponents. But again, I the more drama the better. It keeps it exciting. And again, everyone understands none of it's personal, you know. We're all just playing a game and having fun. And I really want to see them go at it. I can see Leah just dropping a dropping an absolute bomb and then walking back to that service line. It's like not quite a strut, but you can tell she's walking and owning her business. And honestly, I think the girls on Vegas can match that energy. And it'll be so entertaining to watch. You've played with or know a lot of these players pretty well. Wha what what are you what can you tell us kind of from that ⁓ insider perspective on on kind of what they're like and maybe how you see that ⁓ kind of blossoming into the full blown ⁓ team and and kind of the the finished product, if you will, of of this team based on what you know about some of these players. ⁓ gosh, they're all such relentless competitors. ⁓ I did a I did some ⁓ rounds of Athletes Unlimited with a qua a decent handful. ⁓ gosh. ⁓ this person wasn't there, so I can't mention it. ⁓ she's also a super f firecracker. Again, it's that relentless pursuit of athletic greatness and it's that same drive that makes them fiery on the court that makes them absolutely throw themselves into training and growing their that growing their craft. I I can't tell. I'm excited. Also, to be kind of white's teammate has got to be this most hilarious butt clenching, but hilarious time. She gives the firmest and by firmest I mean hardest butt slaps of anyone I've ever played with. You have to brace for impact. I think and I genuinely think every single one of her teammates and her herself will also confirm that. That's hilarious. She's insanely fun, other than ⁓ not because of that. As part of that. She's a fantastic teammate, such a fun, energy, bubbly person to be around. But do clench the butt cheeks, just just in preparation, just just a little bit. That's the kind of inside info only you can bring right there. Is that is that what is that what you bring me around four? Good. That's the expert analysis right there. Berkeley Oblad's gonna be doing a lot to just steady this team. She's a very even cool keel, very cool customer. Mad respect to that. And I think she's going to be a really important focal point for a lot of these firecrackers moving around her. So gotta hold it down for Berkeley. Jenna, right now we're we're less looking forward to rivalries and more looking forward to just seeing Vegas on the court. And one of the things that happens before that is with chatting with these athletes and with Coach Morris. So Jenna and I will continue yapping on the other side, but please let's now transition to our interviews with some of the newest members of the Vegas Thrill. That is, of course, Kendall White. Berkeley Oblad, Lindsay Vanderweide, and head coach Rachel Morris. Kendall, just first. I mean, you see that logo, the the nice video. What are your immediate thoughts just with this whole rebrand of the Vegas Thrill coming back to the MLV in 2027? First thoughts, very excited. I didn't know the rebrand was gonna happen really, and like the colors are amazing. We saw the neon sign in the video, and I think all of us were just like, whoa, wow. ⁓ and we're just excited to be here. I'm excited to be back and and welcoming all the new things and all the new energy. So Tell me about the roster construction. We got most of them here tonight, and then we said had some more on ⁓ on Zoom, but you know, it just seems like it's such a great unit. And just what were your overall thoughts about the team that's gonna be with you next year? I'm very excited. I think we have a lot of big personalities we're gonna come together with lots of energy. Like like we said, I feel like Michael's already bringing it with all of these these things and the new stuff. So I think like us with roster and our new coach and everything, it's very, it's very exciting. We saw a coach come in and make her entrance. You know, how is that? And you know, obviously. Coaching obviously is such a big deal, but you know we've seen so many great coaching signings for this league as well in addition to the players, but just excited to work with coach too, I'm imagining. Yes, very excited. ⁓ it's always nice to see few like strong female coaches in this league and really represent us and I'm really excited to learn from her. I think everybody else it feels the same way. ⁓ we're all very shocked because we didn't know ⁓ who it was gonna be. So when she walked in and really came out again, she gave us a little bit of speech, but we're excited to get to know her a little bit more tonight. Some of us already know her a little bit, but We were still surprised. We had no idea, so we were all tight lipped about everything. Kendall, what does it say about this league? Adding another new team, expanding. ⁓ you've got NorCal, LA, DC, Minnesota, and now of course Vegas. I mean, what does it say about women's volleyball in the US, specifically for MLV, to be expanding like this? I mean the sport is huge. It's obviously growing and we're just giving more and more. I think with all the new teams coming in, we're just giving the people what they want. Like we We know that people want more of this sport. We know how to entertain. Our league is amazing. It's so entertaining to watch. ⁓ I have everybody come up to me all the time asking for tickets to games and things like that. And they just want to see more of it. And I'm happy we can do that for them because we they deserve to watch it. We deserve to play. I mean it's awesome. Candle, we want to know how this team is going to play. Are they going to be fiery and competitive like you? Come on. Yes, of course. Look at the roster of people and you just do a quick Google search of any of us and I think you'd see our personalities are very like we're gonna shine through. ⁓ And I think all the energy is gonna be there. Don't worry about a thing. If we're on the roster, we're gonna be loud. And last one for you, Kendall, just can describe some of the conversations and kind of behind the scenes that was going on? Obviously you knew a lot about this before a lot of us, but just you know talking to ownership, realizing that Vegas is the place that you wanted to be. Just pull back the curtain for us on how that went. Yeah, I mean, as soon as I saw that Vegas was coming back and I heard that Vegas was coming back, I loved living here and had like when the opportunity presented itself to come back, I was very, very excited. So I was spoken to Ruben and people like that when it's coming back and I pretty much dumped on the opportunity. ⁓ again I loved it so much here. I'm not usually a heat girl, I'm a midwestern girl, so I'm I don't know how why I love Vegas, but I do. It's so fun here and again I'm excited for all the new changes, but it was a really a no-brainer for me to come back and see what we can do with this team. I want to win and I believe that we can do that here. So we're excited too. Kendall, thank you for joining us. Thank you. Berkeley, just first off, what were your thoughts when you see that amazing new logo of this? Nice new logo behind us. What were you thinking? Honestly mm it's hard to not get emotional. I mean I just it's so exciting that it's back and then the video that they made and like showing like the dream of bringing it back and like I just it's it's so exciting to see all the fans in the crowd and like just the how much is invested from the city and being from here just adds a whole nother level and so I just I I'm just beyond excited. bec like you said, you're from here. You have a a unique perspective about the volleyball community here that not a lot of us do. What is that volleyball community like? How how invested Is the Vegas community into this team? So invested. It's really impressive. I c just can't even tell you the amount of people that were so bummed when the team you know, wasn't wasn't happening for the next season. and so there's there there's a surprising amount of volleyball people here in Vegas. And it's blossomed and grown since I was a little kid. Like when I was playing club, there was only three or four clubs when I was playing, and now there's a lot of clubs, there's a lot of rec leagues going on, so there's a lot of like Just adults, kids, just everything in between that is so excited about volleyball and so invested in this team. So it's it's it's massive. Berkeley, you've known about this a little bit longer than some of the rest of us, but tell us about what what some of those conversations were like with Ruben, with Michael, kind of behind the scenes when you figured out that this was gonna be an option for 2027. Yeah, I was just, hey, we're coming back and I was like, hell yeah, I'm all in. You know, I just it's it's so exciting to be home and to be part of this community. And I just I can't say it enough, but I just Vegas is a sports town now and it's it's solid solidified itself as one and so to continue to be a part of a team that's here and growing ⁓ in that sports community here in Vegas is just super super exciting to be part of. And speaking of growing, you know, now with MLV too, so much expansion coming in twenty twenty seven. What does that say about our league and where the league is at and the health of it? And just I I would be curious for your perspective on that as a player and kind of seeing that from the ground level on the floor, you know, night in and night out. Where do you feel like the league is right now? ⁓ it's just It like just has s s so many places to go. Like I just don't even have the words for it. I just I think it it just shows how much it's wanting to grow and the direction that it can go and ⁓ the sky's the limit, truthfully. And I j I just think that there's so many people that see the as soon as they see the product, they're just like, this is so much more than what I thought it was, especially those people that have never seen volleyball, right? I think there's so many people that have watched college volleyball and seen it and love it, but then there's people who have never gotten to experience volleyball. in person and once you see it in person I think it just changes your experience and you're just automatically bought in. Like the amount of people that have done that, they're like this is my new favorite sport. And so I just I think the fact that it's growing like this and that we're have so many new fans that just are learning about the sport and are so invested. ⁓ I just I cannot wait to see where it goes. Tell me about your teammates. You already look like a very tight knit group. Everybody seems like they already know each other but describe the squad that's been assembled for this Vegas Thrill twenty twenty seven team. ⁓ I'm so excited. There was definitely some pleasant surprises and some faces that I figured we would see and ⁓ but it's been fun to just mingle tonight and see what how everyone's been and I do actually feel like we're meshing really really well and that's super exciting to see on that first night and so ⁓ I can't wait to see what we look like ⁓ in a practice gym, you know? And Berkeley another thing that you can comment on that not a lot of people can is y w what were some of the ways or or some of the thoughts around the league about the old Vegas team that maybe might carry on in this new iteration of the Vegas team in twenty twenty seven. I hope something we can carry on is just like the grit of this team. I think this team has always had fight and that desire and the will to like want to make this happen and and to show up for our community. ⁓ I think now that we've got someone like Michael who's backing us and we have that r those resources and that that just support in the offices, you know, I just I can't wait to see what we can do with that kind of support. And so I I hope that grit carries over and I hope that we can show that we've got a lot of fight and and competitiveness and desire and that we can just go play some good volleyball. I'm looking forward to seeing too. Berkeley, thank you so much. Thank you. Lindsay, just to start off, I mean, how cool is it when this logo was revealed? You know, just what were you thinking? What were you guys talking about? I mean it's awesome. I had no idea there was gonna be like a rebrand. I mean, I know it was a slight rebranding by bringing the team back, but I didn't know there was gonna be a new logo. The colors are so cool. Like I'm already thinking about what the jerseys are gonna look like, what all the stuff in the arena is gonna look like. Very cool, great colors. I mean, it really represents Vegas, I feel like. Lindsay, it seems like you all are just so tight knit, you know, already. It's like everybody knows everybody. It's like this is gonna be such a tight-knit unit. Just you know, what were you thinking when the team was revealed and when you saw who else was gonna be on the squad? Yeah, I mean I literally only knew two girls that were gonna be on the team. So I came into this a little nervous because it's like you don't know who's gonna be here. Every single face that I've seen, like I already know them or know of them, and I love everything about these girls. I mean, I'm just very excited. I've played with a couple of them before and to get the opportunity to run it back with them is awesome. So I'm excited. Now Lindsay, w you've known about this. Some of us, the rest of us have not. But what were some of those behind the scenes conversations like maybe with Reuben or with Michael when you first heard that Vegas was coming back? Just like peel back the curtain for us if you could about what happened with that. I mean, I talked to Fran mostly and she was very secretive, but at the same time, she was very forward with how how much support that this team is going to have this year, which is what a new team needs. Technically, not new, but in a way we are new again. So she said With the amount of support we have, it's gonna be great. And I mean that's something that a player wants to hear is that there's a backing for the team. So very exciting. Fran, I was locked in after our first conversation with her. So from the micro to the macro, just it's another team coming to MLV in 2027. It's more expansion and with the broader landscape of volleyball, that's gotta be only a great thing, right? But just what's your perspective on it as a player with this league adding yet another team and continuing to grow? Yeah, I mean it's awesome. I always say the more jobs there are, I mean, the better for us, you know? It's just awesome. get to play against more people that I played with in the past, get to play with more people that I played with in the past. It's huge. It's huge for volleyball. To have volleyball in the States and have this many teams, I mean, it's really, really good. And Lindsay, how is this team gonna play, maybe compared to the old version of the Vegas Thrill? Or if I can rephrase it, what kind of older characteristics might carry on into the new iteration? Yeah, I mean, every time we played against the Vegas Thrill, no matter where they were in the ranking or how they'd been doing, you knew that they were gonna bring it and they're gonna bring a spark. Like I just played with Hannah Maddox. Hannah Maddox was a huge spark plug on this team and they always brought it and I really hope that we carry that over and I think that we will. I think you will too. I and just one more final question for you, Lindsay, it's just tomorrow obviously this is this is the precursor and then tomorrow will be the big kind of celebration. What are you expecting? What are you looking for? And and you mentioned that community, it seems like they're really gonna show out tomorrow. Yeah. I mean I'm just excited for it to be public. Like I've had to keep this secret for like two and a half months now. You finally tell people where you're playing now, right? No, exactly. I'm excited for that. I'm just excited for everybody to know. ⁓ I mean It's it's gonna be awesome and I'm just excited for the world to know about it. So appreciate it, Lindsay. Thanks so much. Yes, thank you. Coach, congratulations first off. It was a surprise to me, it's a surprise to everybody else when we saw you walk in here and your announcement. But you know, first off, just can we start with being named the head coach, the Vegas thrill moving into next season? What does it mean to you? Being named the head coach is everything. Like I growing up in the sport, I don't think I ever pictured this to be my path. And so to like walk in the doors today and be like, hi, I'm your new head coach is like a pretty surreal feeling. I think I'll like reflect on it later tonight. But it is awesome to just be given this opportunity and for people to see the things that I've done in other spaces within the sport and understand like what I have the potential to do and to invest in me in the way that Michael and Fran and Ruben are is it means everything. Tell me about some of those inner working conversations when this was all being set up when none of the rest of us knew about this. And just what some of those conversations were like and why this was the right position for you at the right time. Yeah, I think honestly like a lot of the conversations started because I just am a volley nerd. So being in the college game, like when we're not in season, all Kevin and I do is watch MLV or even Love or any of the VNL stuff or any of those things. And so we got calls just asking advice on athletes, where it was like you've played against this athlete or you coached this athlete or You know this athlete because they're an alumni of the same like university that you went to. Can you tell us about them? And the conversations just kind of spiraled from there where they were like, Hold on, have you ever thought about head coaching in this league? And I was like, head coaching, yes, but not in this league. I really thought that my age demographic was like 18 to 22. And when Ruben and I had the conversation about these athletes want to be trained and they wanted to they want to like get to know their coaching staff and they want to be cared for and they want like all of the things that I really thought they had kind of moved past. After they graduated college, I was like, okay, hold on. Like maybe we are suited for this. ⁓ it brings us a lot closer to both of our families, like we're West Coast people and closer to just like all of the people that we love and in an area that we love to be in and we're really familiar with. So it those conversations, it just kind of kept stacking where it was like, this is too much to even pass off. Like we have to take the opportunity. It would be kind of dumb not to. And then it was like, what's the worst thing that happens? You know? So and I'm all about taking chances and especially with somebody that I care so much about and with people who care so much about women's sports. So yeah, it was a lot of like weird conversations back and forth and very unorthodox, which is like most of my life. So that it also felt natural in that space. I love it. W you mentioned watching you know, the pr the pro game from your ⁓ position in college. What it what stands out to you? What do you notice maybe from your your Then outsider perspective that now will inform your insider perspective now. Yeah, I think like there's two things. Watching on TV and then like having conversations with the athletes and the coaches that are in the league. I'm really excited to be a part of the head coaching core that is like the MLV. There's a lot of really great females in there that I'm really excited to be able to learn from and like just get to be peers with. And then as far as the athletes go, like watching them play and like all of the intricacies of the game and being able to like level up in another way for me is really exciting. I'm all about offense. Kevin's all about defense, but I'm all about offense and I love running fast and I love being really creative and like having the athletes to be able to do so and like kind of translate that over from what we've been doing at Indiana into like a higher level and more power and like more speed. I'm really excited about so and like there were a couple teams that did that this year and I was like okay like this is what we can do and we can really work here. So I would say the offense and then the coaches that I'm really excited for. You're making me nerd out because I watched so many of the different styles and the different ways teams changed around last season from even when they started, which I could take up all of your time about, but we'll get there eventually. Coach, first I want to ask you, you know, just off camera are all your players, most of your players here tonight. W tell ⁓ tell me about this squad. What tell me about this squad that you've assembled, how they play and also who they are as people. Yeah, I think the unique part about me taking this job is like I kind of came in mid Of making the roster, but there are some athletes on this roster that I'd been either watching for so long or even knew personally where I was like, ⁓ it's somebody that I really want to coach, and I think they'll mesh with whoever else is on the roster. So I remember like really early, if Ryan and Ruben were like, this is who we have, this is who we've signed. Kendall White plays with like so much energy and so much passion, whether she's on the sideline or on the floor, like she brings so much life. Lindsay Van Dwight I've watched forever because I'm a duck alum also. So like a little duck ties there. Like Kayla Caffey plays is like fast, plays with speed, plays with energy. Like that's in my system. So there's just like Savannah Coleheed played for me at Indiana. So like getting to be able to coach her again is gonna be really, really fun and unique. So I don't know. I'm just really excited about like the personalities that we have. Getting them it all meshed together will be a unique science experiment because it's like any personality matching. But I'm just excited about the way they all play the game and the way they have passion for the game. You're reading my mind because I I was just thinking, you know, you all are gonna live up to the name. I mean, because you got some fiery personalities and there is gonna be a lot of passion on that court, so that's what I was thinking as well. But you know, coach, also I I've I've been asking your players this also, but just within the broader landscape of volleyball, and I feel like you're uniquely qualified to talk about this from you know being involved in so many different areas of it, what does it say to you, you know, with the thrill being one of many teams helping expand this league this year, again within that broader context of volleyball? Growing up in the sport, like I talked about earlier, and like also coaching from like the roots all the way up, I have like obviously a unique perspective, but like the way that this league is expanding, like volleyball is here to stay. And I think that is something that like I'm really excited for the community to recognize and realize is like it's not just us that are coming back. Like there are multiple teams coming and expanding in every league that's literally in the country right now. And like volleyball is here to stay at the junior level, at the college level, it is booming right now and like now we get to be a part of that too. So I just think like the expansion, the commitment, I think that's like the biggest thing. The commitment that we're seeing in ownership groups, the commitment we're seeing at the league level is like they are just nailing it right now. And that's like as a woman in sports is like the best place to be. And so coach now what happens is is really what I'm want to ask. So I know tomorrow you'll meet with the community and it'll be the full c official unveiling. What happens next for you? Next, honestly, I go back to Indiana and I finish my Indiana season because I'm crazy ⁓ and gonna coach through the fall and then I'll be back here in November for OTAs and we will be rocking it with the thrill. So it's kind of a weird in-between. We're getting married at the end of June or next year in June. So we're just gonna do all of it all at one time. It's all gonna happen all at the same time. Like we're ready for it for the whole year. You're gonna live up exactly to the name. My my last most important question is will will your dog be on the sidelines at a coaching capacity? ⁓ absolutely. Kona is currently right now on our roster at Indiana as the director of athlete and wellness director of athlete wellness and happiness. That's a very important title. Very important title. So I assume that she'll have a similar role, especially since Ruben, the president, also has a dog from the same breeder, actually. So yeah, she'll be around. Coach, thank you so much for your time. We appreciate it. And we're looking forward to 2027. Yeah, thank you. Awesome stuff. Thank you to all the athletes and coach for chatting with me over in Vegas. Glad to be there. Awesome celebration. And yeah, I need the 2027 season to be here. ASAP. But Jenna, please, ⁓ any standout comments from the players or from coach in these interviews? So the one thing that I found super interesting in a lot of those interviews overall was I'm not going to say secrecy, but the willingness everyone had to sign on to the project without having a ton of the other details in place. Like normally when you think about recruiting, you'll ask questions like, who's my coach? Who are my teammates? What is this gonna look like? What is that that gonna look like? And I think a lot of the, ⁓ a lot of the athletes as well as the coach really believed in the mission and were willing to sign on to that mission without knowing a lot of the particulars. But that again speaks to the professionalism of what it means to be a professional athlete. I think Kendall White specifically, ⁓ she signed on to be a part of a project. She got to know Rachel Morris and she's like, ⁓ my gosh, this is gonna be fantastic. we're gonna really work well together because obviously Rachel Morris is a fantastic candidate for a coach, but believing in this project for the sake of the project and not it's a it's a matter of sequence, right? Of what comes first versus second in can be a cart before the horse circle if you let it, but when you believe in the mission as a whole, you can lock in and be ready to make some magic happen. I think that's an awesome point by you. It really is a you know, for another ⁓ euphemism, it's a chicken or the egg scenario of like what comes first, the belief or the proof of concept. And I I think that's such a great point by you because I think you kinda have to have both. And I think for the players it makes a lot of sense to, you know, have some reservations about taking that leap of faith. But to me, and it tacks on to what you're saying, you hear the conviction with what in what they're talking about and the conversations that they had with Ruben or Fran with in the front office and how they not sold it to them, but that they could they could hear the belief and feel the belief in the in the the program and what was coming in in Michael's investment and it makes sense. And then, you know, you hear like to me what jumps out is like talking to Berkeley and the first thing that she says to me is it's hard not to get emotional about it. And just from someone like her who's there, who lives in Anderson, who knows that community and how important volleyball is, there's a lot of other places you can go with that answer other than to start with that it makes you emotional. And I don't think you frankly would hear that if it's not the case. And that to me shows the level of investment there. And again, when we're talking about chicken or the egg scenario of like, if it strikes that emotional chord and has that resonance, that's where you need to hit. That you need to have that with your with your athletes. And I think again, that that extends not just to her, you know, talking to Lindsay, talking to Kendall, you can tell that there is a an emotional reaction to building this thing back up. And then even with Coach Rachel, I think one of the things that's so fascinating about her is she's got a chip on her shoulder with being a young coach in this league and wanting to be. I think it's just so amazing that she wants to be among the the female coach role models that we have in the sport, never mind in this league, but it's not lip service. That is, I want to be the best of the best. I want to be one of those role models for young women, for the players that I have, for other coaches in this league. I want to join that upper echelon, like she I think she alluded to. All of that to me ties into the emotional resonance. And I think they have a hundred percent. And she even mentioned that, you know, she comes in, she's willing like none of them, none of the folks you talk to, and I'm sure this extends to the entire organization, none of them are done learning. They are ready to learn from this next level, learn from each other, you know, a however many year vet ten year vets are ready to learn more. From Coach Morris, learn more from each other. It's a really positive environment of growth, right? No one feels like they've arrived yet. There's that confidence, yes, but that confidence in themselves as they continue to learn and grow. And it doesn't say it says I'm not good enough yet, but not from a place of weakness, from a place of confidence. I'm not good enough yet. And I can't wait to take on that next summit together. That was fantastic. And we also have to give a plug to Coach Morris's dog, Kona. I was about to say that's how you make a a positive environment. If you don't have one to start with, you put Kona on the bench, and there you go. Positive environment automatically made. Yeah. Coach Blake in Omaha during the Omaha training camp. ⁓ my God. ⁓ what was his dog's name? It was this beautiful red golden retriever. I think his name might have been red. Double, we'll have to double check. Instant morale boost, you know, when you're sore, when you're tired, when the days are getting long. Just having an animal around. Fantastic. And rostering them as director of ⁓ Player morale and happiness. Iconic. Here for it. It's perfect. It's perfect. But yeah, no, I was it was so much fun to talk to everybody. ⁓ can't wait to see them all on the floor. And yeah, I think ⁓ the the non-tangible chords that are being struck and also the the tangible way that this team is going to play on the court, I think is all gonna mesh really well, and I'm excited to see it. Jenna, now that we have twelve teams, there's a question I've been wanting to ask you. Does a conference set up makes sense. I think for a while some of us were looking at this being like, hmm, I wonder how we set up this schedule, looking at if we added another team and then, you know, knowing that Vegas was kind of on the horizon, knowing the expansion teams that we've had, this is more of a broader question, kind of zooming out from the specifics of Vegas. But I think now, at least for me, that becomes a logical just ruminating question of does this have the potential to, as we alluded to a little bit earlier, Create some rivalries if we split off into maybe a conference format. And does that even make sense in your opinion? I mean, we have to think about this from a logistical perspective. So until now, we've been playing every team home and away twice. So you'll play a team four times, right? And that's been with you know, with an eight team format, that's been games. It's been a number of games. ⁓ Now, if we would apply that same principle, playing everyone home and away twice against eleven opponents, that quickly gets unmanageable, especially since we have not adjusted our season parameters and dates. From a pure logistical standpoint, you can't play that many games in a season. You really can't. So in my mind, it really makes sense to break into conferences. And then, like you said, that's when it gets really fun. You have rivalries, you have a an even deeper understanding of your opponents when you're keeping track of a smaller conference versus the entire league. I don't know a thing about the Tampa Bay Pirates. Couldn't tell you a thing. Or but I do know the Vikings, the Lions, the Bears, and the Packers. That that's a that's a football universe I as a casual fan can understand. So maybe in by breaking into conferences, casual fans can understand the dynamics, the histories, the rivalries between a smaller subset of teams. Just my thought. What do you think? Yeah. I I I think it's I think it's a fast track to create those rivalries. I think it weights some regular season matches a little bit more heavily with adding to the parody that we already have. I think personally it's the strength of this league of of any given night anyone can win. ⁓ I think I think you have those rivalries brewing already from previous seasons, and now I think I think firmly splitting off into a conference would hypothetically kind of add add fuel to the fire of those rivalries. I think it adds to the standings watches at the end of the season because you have more of an idea of what you need to look for, what matches you need to look for, and less like, well, the math works this way and this works that way. Whereas in a hypothetical conference scenario, I think by the end of the season you'd be like, okay, this is a match that is going to be for some serious some serious bragging rights and some serious playoff potential. I think, you know, then just from like the logistical standpoint, I was doing some some thinking research on this. It would You'd have buys and incentives for the winning conferences, a six-team conference model. Again, thinking about some other sports, kind of that traditional path is like that top two or three seed. You get incentives for winning your conference, things like that. It just to me adds more than I I to me, I I see it, and this is why I wanted to ask the question. I see it as adding, not subtracting. I think now the subtraction is. Yeah. The possible subtraction is like if you have, you know, cross-country rivalries, you know, like let's say You know, like Atlanta becomes a rival with the new LA team, that's not necessarily gonna f heat itself to conference rivalry, but you know I mean, again, from the purely logistical standpoint, until all of us girly pops are flying across the country in private jets, the ⁓ the ⁓ the ⁓ Orlando to San Diego hall was rough. And I I I am also concerned about our athletes' well being, right? So if there's less intercon intercontinental wrong word, interstate Coast to coast travel, that also sounds like a huge win. ⁓ and maybe those rivalries become special, the big crossover matches when it really counts in playoffs or, you know, in that championship run. So I don't think that's a necessarily a detraction either. ⁓ but who's to say? So what actually forms a rivalry? People talk about carrying on rivalries from previous teams? Like, where do you think that actually comes from? Well, I I'm gonna could not answer that question and flip it back on you because that's one of the things I wanted to ask is because I think we talk or, you know, talking heads me, I talk about it a lot like, ⁓ let's create rivalries, let's create rivalries. And I think it's very easy and it's a good point for a volleyball s fan to say, you know, that's all well and good. What does look like in volleyball? And I I want to ask you that because I'm like like in your playing days, be it college or pro, what was the closest thing to a rivalry that you ever experienced as a player? As a player, so it would have been the Creighton Marquette rivalry. Now, in my era, I think you can push the definition of a rivalry, because I will confess, Sevron, I play I well, I was at Marquette for five seasons. I redshirted season one. I won once. Marquette won once. So that's about what? One and fourteen. I don't know if that counts as a rivalry. However, Marquette and Creighton was always Jonesing to be top of the big east, top of the conference. So I think that's where that big rivalry came from. Top of the conference. There you go. Exactly. Top of the conference, pushing to be that number one, number two, and get that auto bid to the NCAA tournament. continuing on from that, I th obviously interstate rivalries are big. So maybe in our in our sense that becomes regional rivalries. ⁓ the Indy Columbus trip is what, three hour drive tops, maybe? You're the you're the Midwesterner. You you tell me. I fly into both. I insert really bad and dated Ohio joke here. It's Ohio. Nobody knows anything about Ohio. Sh I I love it. It's all Ohio? Always has been. I loved Columbus, Ohio. I will always I I almost had to refrain myself from wearing my Columbus Fury shirt 'cause that's just a crazy. I was gonna say it's still one of my favorites. Fury, please invite me anytime. Always happy to go. Exactly. ⁓ so ⁓ like I said, local geography rivalries ⁓ are easy, you know, maybe, you know, a little more fan movement, a little more people have that understanding, right? Of like, ⁓ you know. Let's get those guys. But I also want to see if certain play styles can generate rivalries themselves. If a certain team runs really hot and heavy out of the middle and runs into another team that runs really hot and heavy out of the middle, that becomes a really big matchup and a rivalry between those two middle blockers kind of going at it while their teams, you know, move around them. Or maybe you are, and maybe it's the opposite. Maybe you're, you know, you really focus your a lot of your offense on the pins. while your opponent runs up the middle a ton. So does that be a con that it almost becomes a conversation on the merits of your play style of choice. So maybe that's more of a volleyball nerd type rivalry rather than a local community rivalry. But I I that's kind of where I see it. And especially if we continue to play certain teams more frequently in a hypothetical conference setting. I think more of those things can come to light and be noticed on a more regular basis. If that makes any sense No, I I I think you kind of just made the point right there of of that that rivalry is is born out of out of conference rivalry. And I think that's ⁓ I I think that's why we look at that as being a potential ⁓ pathway to those. So that's that's what I see and I and I agree with you there. Jenna, I buried the lead from why I'm coming to you from a a hotel room, a very blank background, which is that we're not done with these team and brand reveals. We are are Bouncing around all over the place. And ⁓ I am in Minnesota for what we can now reveal is go is the Minnesota Forge have been announced, and that is the official name. It's no longer MLV Minnesota. We have the official name, that official logo was released. Awesome video, awesome graphics, little explainer graphics too, which I always love. Like I j I notice things too because I'm just a very, you know, base level like I I have no graphic design background whatsoever. So You know, my my smooth brain sometimes misses some of these things at first go around. Yeah, I didn't I didn't even see the hammer in it the first time. I was like, ⁓ my god, there it is. I saw the hammer, but I didn't see the ⁓ That they have the ⁓ at the bottom of the hammer that they see, okay. It's not just me. Hang on. No, I'm doubting myself. Let me try. They point so they point to how the bottom of the hammer is like a subtle ⁓ shape ⁓ for Minnesota, which is so cool. But either way it is. I I see it now. I love it. Yeah. Go go to the Instagram Go see all of all the different ⁓ talking points behind the designs. I love how the colors represent different things about Minnesota. I think genuinely this is not MLV employees saying this. I think they genuinely knocked it out of the park with this whole brand reveal and design. ⁓ but anyway, yeah, that's why I'm in Minnesota and we're gonna have some more content ⁓ from that coming up. Check the MLB socials for that. ⁓ but yeah, just Jenna, I mean, what was your reaction to the the Forge being revealed for MLV? ⁓ the first shallow reaction. Thank God we have colors other than black, red, blue. I adore all of our existing teams. I do. I'm not knocking those team color palettes, but I feel like the sage is such a the sage in purple is such a refreshing, different look at sports colors. I'm aware there's only so many colors, but at the same time there are an infinite number of colors. So the effort that they took to find such a unique look, can't wait. I got to pee I peeked at the jerseys a little bit while we were at Ren in Texas and they looked absolutely fantastic. So I love that new look. I love the name. I their whole brand story right of like forged in the north that that edge strength. Being an upper Midwesterner myself, like I liked that. I resonate with that. And I would think the people of Minneapolis will resonate with that as well. So I'm a fan over here. I I'm jealous that you got to peek at the jerseys because I feel like I was always running around in different spots or or locked in the s the place where I was doing the the podcast. But I didn't get to see that sweet room where they were they were designing the jerseys. So I'm I'm gonna bug you after this to tell me what they looked like. But 100%. ⁓ you we just had to go look out the front window and then just really slowly and deliberately stare through the conference room. Just looking straight into the conference room. No, it's I I thought it was awesome. ⁓ I'm really excited now ⁓ for The announcement coming up after Minnesota of potentially ⁓ Nork Allen if they'll re reveal anything there as well. But ⁓ and then I heard there's an ice cream social for you this afternoon, so you better make sure you're one of the first two hundred. Very excited. Okay. I'll I'll make sure. I'm running I'm going I'm heading over early, so we'll we'll make sure. F ⁓ and then ⁓ you know, I know DC will will announce some stuff later on ⁓ potentially next month as well, too. So I'm just really excited that we continue to ⁓ further hash out the brand development of these of these teams. I I've Really it's something that I've always loved about our league is is the different styles, the different logos. ⁓ you know, I think they're they're really neat. I loved what the Fury did the other day, welcoming the sirens into the league and like kind of doing that ⁓ fury on top and the sirens on the bottom thing. I just ⁓ f personally I always love the the mythical creatures, but that's that's a that's a nerdy side tangent to that. I was gonna say there are so many strong feminine archetypes h hiding in Greek mythology, but I think that's a topic of a whole nother conversation. Absolutely. And then just to your point with The color scheme, that little p that pastel green, I really like from the forge as well too. I thought that was great. Big fan. So we will, as we as I said, we will continue to bring those ⁓ brand reveals and team announcements to you ⁓ as we go. but for now that's ⁓ just keep an eye out on our socials for more from Minnesota. I'm sure more from Vegas will be coming out as well, too. And ⁓ we'll keep you posted on that. Jen, if it's okay with you, can we move along to ⁓ the mailbag? ⁓ is ⁓ we have mailbag. I was gonna say I like, please keep asking us questions, guys, because we will give you answers as much as we possibly can. So please keep asking us. We want to provide you with information without getting our hands slapped. We are on your side. Absolutely. And it's it's easier sometimes if you lead us to with those questions, but also ⁓ the the nice thing is if you have more volleyball and player specific insider questions, Jenna is happy to answer those and we'll bring her on to answer those questions as well too. So ⁓ just know when you ask questions you won't always be getting the answers from me. We can bring on Jenna to give you even more of the the insider perspective. ⁓ this week's mailbag question though has absolutely nothing to do with volleyball. It was a question ⁓ posed on our last video, which is from at Tensi214. And this is because I mentioned ⁓ F1 in the last ⁓ video. So sorry about that. This is about my lifting and coasting to make it through the 120 degrees in the desert ⁓ to get to Vegas without my car exploding. ⁓ but ⁓ he says, ⁓ or they say, let's talk F1. Who's your team and who are your favorite drivers? And can anyone challenge Kimmy this year? Quick tangent. ⁓ I am not a part of the Drive to Survive community. Or I was, I watched it, but I was actually into ⁓ ⁓ F1 long before I I grew up when I was a little kid watching it because my my grandfather ⁓ actually was like in the pit lanes and everything back in the Bruce McLaren days and like a couple of the coolest thing I've ever heard. ⁓ he he was he was the coolest. But I mean I when I was a little kid I would go to my great grandparents' pit place in Long Island and I would root for the red car. And the red car happened to be the Ferrari of Michael Schumacher, so I grew up a Ferrari and Schumacher fan, which is the most frontrunner answer ever, but I mean, hey, I I I was I was living good back then, not even knowing it. But ⁓ so I was a Ferrari and Schumacher fan all the way until his Mercedes days. And then when he left, I think that was about like 2010, 2013, somewhere around there, I kind of took a little bit of a hiatus from the sport and then came back and was a big Daniel Ricardo fan ⁓ through Drive to Survive, I ended up liking him through that. and it was so funny when we went out to ⁓ when we had to went out to dinner for Wren and I was wearing those like ⁓ weird socks and the the shirt. ⁓ those are actually Daniel Ricardo's ⁓ brand, which is so funny. ⁓ his ⁓ Enchanted brand, ⁓ which everyone's like, What what is that? What are you wearing? I'm like, it's just some driver's brand, you wouldn't get it. But anyway, ⁓ my my my long winding road to the current answer is that I've always been a Ferrari fan and I've always really loved Lewis Hamilton. My tangent to the tangent is if I was teaching a media class and I was going to say to athletes, if you want one example of how to handle media, how to handle public. relations, anything like that, Lewis Hamilton is the best athlete I've ever seen at at public facing persona and and handling difficult questions, all of that. I think he is just the the true face of professionalism ⁓ through everything. I think he's dealt with some unfair media criticism. I think he's dealt with some unfair narratives. I think he also just handles being famous with class. I love Lewis Hamilton. So when they finally merged and were together, per of Lewis and Ferrari fan currently ⁓ but also a shout out. I have like that's my my top of the field team and my midfield guy. I always liked Este Esteban Okan. He's got a little bit of an underdog story, which I liked. But anyway, to the question, can anyone challenge Kimmy? ⁓ yes, but only individually, and because of that he'll win. I don't think anybody's working as a team enough to beat him this year. I think that because McLaren are still trying to figure out who's number one, I think because Ferrari has technical difficulties all the time. And because Max isn't looking very good, I think unfortunately it's gonna be Kimmy in a runaway. But I think actually the one who can challenge them the most is George, but ⁓ he can't finish a race. So that's that's where I I feel like it is right now. But anyway, that's my long winded answer to ⁓ your F one question. Well, and I'm a fake fan because I watched Drive to Survive and I realized I liked European pretty boys, money and cars. So there's nothing wrong with that at all. There's nothing wrong with that at all. But Jenna, I wanna that that was a very specific mailbag question and I want to just expand it to then this final segment of our show is just what the the classic what are you up to question and and what we're up to. I've already gone and saying I'm in Minnesota coming to you from a lovely courtyard ⁓ Marriott ⁓ hotel room. But what are you up to this week? ⁓ it's very, very exciting. You see at the Bradford Beach, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, women doubles open. It's the playoffs now. So it's very, very exciting. I'm playing tonight. Now it's How we led up to the playoffs? Give us you can't you can't just you can't just start playoffs. Like how have you played leading up to then? Like like what are we looking for in the playoffs? What's the matchup? ⁓ me and my partner, Natalie Geidel, we've been really strong performing. We're a very offensive heavy team owing to the fact that we are probably six inches taller than everybody else. it's fine. Natalie, ⁓ however, this enormous advantage of team those tall girls, that's our team name is those tall girls. ⁓ who do you play tonight? ⁓ those tall girls. Got it. However, slight trouble in paradise because last week we played against our good friend Chloe. Now Chloe played four years of Division I Beach. So we got worked. Natalie and I win with firepower. And when that works, that works. So that's the scouting report against us. Roll short in every direction. I can't read. Natalie can read. ⁓ we've been friends since ⁓ high school and I've maintained this since high school. Natalie is the superior volleyball player where I'm the superior middle blocker. And by playing beach together now, I can, you know, expand my game and, you know, continue to play the sport I love, even if it looks a little bit different. But I'm very optimistic for our chances tonight. I just have to cross my fingers that Natalie gets off of work in time to get to the game. She's a nurse, so sometimes she works long shifts. She's has a volleyball outfit underneath the the strongest and ri right to the beach, take it off. ⁓ I don't know how she does it. I frankly she's she's absolutely my hero. And ⁓ she comes in hot from the hospital. She's not college nurse, so cancer patients. And then she's like, All right, let's ball. Just absolutely jump bombs on people. That's a heck of a lifestyle to go right into it. That's awesome. Well, I'm hoping that you'll ⁓ that you'll keep us updated on the results, ⁓ and and we'll check in. ⁓ Because next week you are or at the end of this week, we're on the road, you and I, to ⁓ Florida, where which is the sneak peek of our next week's episode, hopefully. ⁓ we will be looking to see if we can chat with some of our athletes that are gonna be playing in the alumni game for the Gators. So that is our sneak peek of next week's episode where we will also ask if Jenna has ⁓ has succeeded in advancing in next round of of her playoffs. Well, the concerning thing is co ed B playoffs are the day we get back from Florida. So that's also gonna go poorly, but Hey, those are problems for future us. Sleep is Let's get you out of Minneapolis and I'll see you in Florida. I think that's a great place to end. So Jen and I will head to Florida next after this, but we will see you all on the next episode of the Set Six podcast. But thank you so much for listening to this one. Again, everybody, please continue to submit your comments and questions for the mailbag and continue to like, comment, and subscribe. Until next time, I'm Severin Lavenstein. That's Jenna Rosenthal, and this is Set Six.