|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
NCAA WOMEN'S COLLEGE WORLD SERIESJune 2, 2012Jessica MooreSamantha PappasMike WhiteOKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA CALIFORNIA – 6 THE MODERATOR: Joining us from Oregon we have Head Coach Mike White and then student‑athletes Jessica Moore and Samantha Pappas. Coach, an opening comment. COACH WHITE: Well, congratulations to Cal. They're one of two, I believe Pac‑12 teams through tomorrow, I believe. Is that right? So it had to be one of us. It ended up being a good game. Got off to a little bit of a slow start there. Got down but we didn't give up. And I think that's been what's been our forte all year is that we haven't given up. We kept fighting until the last out, and we made it very interesting there in the sixth inning. They got a fortunate bounce back off the wall in that one play, and catcher made a great play at home plate. Otherwise, that inning maybe could have kept going. But I like the fact that Jess put everything she could out there on the mound. Cal came out ready to swing the bats. They took advantage of some mistakes, drove the ball, got up to a good lead. I was real happy the way Karissa Hovinga came in and picked up Jess a little bit there and gave our team a shot at the end there to get ahead. But Jolene Henderson is an excellent pitcher. She bent, but she didn't break, and that's the important thing. And I'm really hoping that our team has learned a lot of things from this experience. We want to thank all the sponsors. We want to thank the City of Oklahoma City. They've done a fantastic job. And this is everything, every bit of what everybody says it is. And I know my team loved every minute of it. And we can't wait to get back here again, God willing. THE MODERATOR: Questions? Q. How emotional was this tournament and this year for you? I know you were showing some tears. You guys were down, then you were back up. Talk about the range of emotions tonight. JESSICA MOORE: It was just a lot of ups and downs throughout the whole season. The whole‑‑ I think our whole postseason was kind of topped off with that Texas series. We had a lot going on. We faced a lot of adversity there, and I think it got us prepared to come here for the World Series. And you know we lost that first game, but I know we just wanted to fight. Q. Coach, can you talk about that sixth inning, how the offense had been kind anemic up to that point and you all were able to fight back and almost make a really good game of it. COACH WHITE: It was very interesting. One of the outs was probably one of the hardest balls I have ever seen hit in the infield and the kid made a play on. That was an incredible play. This team, you just don't know what they're going to come out with. And it's a joy and sometimes it's a frustration point, because you know what they can do day in, day out. I see it at practice, I see how hard they work, and I see what they can do. And sometimes we have it and sometimes you don't. But that's what we're working on. We're working to be more consistent to bring that kind of ability to hit the ball like we did in the sixth innings and like we did in Texas and those other areas that we need to bring day in and day out. And we're working hard on that, and we're going to get better each and every year. And we'll be a force for a couple more years to come, I believe, with some of the people we have coming. Q. Samantha, can you talk about just how tough Jolene was today and being able to locate her pitches and being able to get a good stick on it? SAMANTHA PAPPAS: Jolene is definitely a great pitcher. She mixes well, which makes it hard to anticipate what's coming. At my second at‑bat, we had a good game plan going, which Coach White came up with, and stuck to it and it worked. So I want to thank Coach White for the game plan he gave me right before my at‑bat. Q. Mike, for what it's worth to your girls, the California players were sitting right where you're sitting. They paid a great tribute to the Oregon team for your toughness, your competitive spirit, and the fact you never give up. And they were high in their praise of your team. COACH WHITE: Thank you. That means a lot, because they're competitors. We want to make sure we leave everything out on the field and there's no regrets. And I think the girls, right, you got it on your arms somewhere? They got on their arms: No regrets. They have no regrets. They left everything out there. Q. How many do you bring back? COACH WHITE: We just lose four. One was a pitcher that was hurt for the season, but we lose three starters from tonight's game. So we're pretty well set for the next year. And I've got some great recruits coming. Q. Jessica, what do you think is going to be the most lasting memory that you're going to be able to take away from this entire trip here at Oklahoma City? JESSICA MOORE: I think it was just coming in and getting that win. You know, a lot of teams come here for a few years and can't even get that one win. So I think just coming out here and playing our hearts out and going home, you know, 1 and 2, is a great experience for us. We know what it feels like to compete here. And we played some great teams. And we did well. We didn't get shut out at all. And we put up a lot of hard fights. So I think that's just the greatest experience that we can take from this year. COACH WHITE: Well, we were also one hit away against Arizona State from getting a tied ballgame and runner on two and none out. So this game is tough. It's a game of inches. And sometimes it doesn't go your way. But it didn't stop us from fighting. So I'm real proud of the ladies for doing that. Q. Coach, we asked Coach Eriksen this. The impact the past few weeks has had on their program. He said he's been so bunkered down, he doesn't really know. But in terms of where‑‑ what's your sense of where Oregon softball is on the map right now after this nice run you guys have had, and how do you anticipate building on that? COACH WHITE: I know Coach Eriksen didn't give you a straight answer like that. But I think it's been just a great experience for us. Everything is a stepping stone. It's very hard to go straight to the top. It just doesn't happen that way. You see it in a lot of programs, and it's a building period. Half the seniors, because they have to come through, maybe not get the success right away, just like the previous senior classes we had making the Super Regional, making it to the College World Series. We want to make sure it's a stepping stone. It's just a start of something to come. Now it's going to take a lot of hard work. There's a lot of great teams out there, and you see in college softball, get a lot stronger and a lot deeper. We just know it's not going to be an automatic thing that we just keep coming back here. We'll have to keep working very, very hard. THE MODERATOR: Thank you. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|