Sooner Profile - Anna Stadel - University of Oklahoma

NORMAN, Okla. -- Growing up in an athletic family, Anna Stadel was exposed to sports from the time she could walk.

Stadel, who's father was a track and field All-American at Rice and who's mother played field hockey at San Diego State, has been competing in just about everything she could get involved in since a young age. Ironically, she hated volleyball when she first started playing. As she grew up and became vested in it, however, she realized it was a game she was good at and something that could open doors for her.

Now a senior, Stadel is not sure what life will be like beyond volleyball, but she plans to take full advantage of the connections she has made throughout her collegiate experience.

We talked to Anna last week about the impact sports have had on her life and how she plans to stay involved.

On balancing the demands of work and school:
"Obviously as a senior this is the fourth time around so it's a little easier. It's kind of cute to see the freshmen because their eyes are so big and they don't really know what's going on. As a leader on the team, you just try to help the freshmen adjust as much as you can because you can't really come to practice and have other stuff on your mind -- you have to be focused on the here and now. You learn to adjust as time goes on and they're doing a really good job."

On how much of a leadership role she is trying to bring to the team:
"With five of us, our seniors are really trying to fill the shoes of last year's seniors. It's in a different way because we're a new group of kids, but at the same time, we're just trying to help the underclassmen as best as we can and they're all really responsive to it. Our chemistry has been great and we all get along so well. For me personally, I want to set an example whether it's by being vocal or just with what I do on the court through my work ethic. I hope I can be someone they look up to and feel like they can come to with problems."

On her expectations for this season considering the loss of some key players:
"My biggest thing this year is that I just want to be consistent and be a player that the team can rely on. We did lose some big-time players but I don't see that hindering our performance this year. We have really talented players from top to bottom and I think everybody's is going to be able to step up in tight situations. We'll see that more as the season progresses, but I have no worries that we lost some players who were All-Big 12 because we have people who are capable of being All-Big 12 again this year."

On her family's athletic background:
"Obviously with having parents who both played sports collegiately, from day one I was thrown into all kinds of sports. I'm from a really small town so they just have the basics but my parents always made sure I had the opportunity to play on club teams in Topeka, Emporia or even Kansas City my last year. It was a commitment for them, but it was a commitment for me as well doing homework and eating and sleeping in the car. It paid off because I'm getting my education paid for here now. I'm definitely from a big-time sports background and that helped me in the process of getting recruited and knowing what to expect. My parents always took us to different colleges growing up, so I always felt like I was a little more clued in having parents who had gone through the process themselves."

On when volleyball became her sport of choice:
"It's a funny story because I started playing when I was in sixth grade and I absolutely hated it. I was dead-set on playing basketball in college -- that's what tall girls do is play basketball. I didn't even start to like volleyball until I started playing club my freshman year in high school. After that, club is pretty much a year-round sport so you're completely submerged in it. You either learn to love it or you get out. I just kind of got wrapped up in it and it's ended up being a great decision, but for a long time I hated volleyball."

On the possibility of also competing on the track team and how she made time for other sports growing up:
"Track, for me, is a completely different sport because it's individual. I did some relays and stuff but for the most part I just did individual events. It's still something I've looked into possibly doing this spring once volleyball is done. It's just such a different sport and it was an outlet for me. I love the team aspect of volleyball but with track, you do it when you want to do it. It was nice for me to have two different outlets -- in volleyball it was a lot of camaraderie and in track it was more just individual. I think that really helped my volleyball in terms of learning to focus in on individual changes I needed to make. It definitely helped accentuate my volleyball skills."

On what lies ahead for her beyond sports:
"I think about that all the time -- what am I going to do without volleyball in my life. I definitely am planning on going to grad school. I'm looking at some schools out in California. I have some family out there and I'm kind of a beach bum at heart. I just want to head out there and do something different because if I don't travel and do some things I've always wanted to do while I'm still able to do that, I might never get the opportunity.

"I'm majoring in health and exercise science. I'll be done next December, so I'll have one full year where I can be a regular student. I love college towns. College is so much fun and I love OU. The network here is amazing, so hopefully I can take advantage of that when I'm done. That's one of the biggest things people overlook -- it's not always what you know, it's who you know, and we as student-athletes here have quite the connection."

University of Oklahoma Athletics

Sooner Profile - Anna Stadel

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