North Carolina State University Athletics
Stadelmann Confident of Wolfpack's Progression
6/14/2004 12:00:00 AM | Women's Tennis
June 14, 2004
RALEIGH, N.C. - Despite some remarkable efforts on the court this past season, the Wolfpack women's tennis team lost several hard fought matches with many tough national competitors. Taking it all in stride, rising senior Danielle Stadelmann views next season as a potential break out year for the Pack.
"I really think that we are going to come up big next season," Stadelmann said. "We thought that this year was going to be a lot better and we got really close in a lot of our matches against some great competition. A lot of our matches were much closer than the score showed. We really believed in ourselves this past year, but there always seemed to be a little something that was missing. I think now we realize that we can be a very successful team and we have what it takes to compete with everyone on our schedule."
Just like the Wolfpack football team, next season the women's tennis squad will face an incredibly tough schedule. Last season, two Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) teams placed in the top 10 of the final rankings released by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA). In all, eight conference teams finished the season ranked within the top 75 programs in the nation. As if competition in the ACC wasn't tough enough already, the league will be ushering in two other programs with the addition of the University of Miami and Virginia Tech. Miami is coming off of an extremely successful season, in which they finished ranked 15th in the nation by the ITA and collected their final Big East Conference championship. Aware of all of these factors, Stadelmann's confidence remains intact.
"There is pressure no matter who you play," Stadelmann said. "With the ACC it's really tough though, because there really isn't a bad team in the conference. When you want to improve your record you really have to go out and play at your best nonstop. There aren't any walkovers in this league."
Stadelmann will be looking to help lead the team next season, as one of four senior members on the squad. Along with the leadership of the older team members, Stadelmann is quick to point out that the team learns valuable lessons from everyone involved in the program.
"Everyone on this team is a leader in their own way," Stadelmann said. "Coach Olsen does a lot of team building activities that really work well for us and we all recognize that everyone on the team brings something different to the table to contribute to our success as a team, as well as on individual levels. The way our team is set up, Coach Olsen and Coach Christa are always open to talking to all of us about anything, which really helps because knowing that your coaches are behind you every step of the way does more for an athlete than you can imagine."
"Part of the reason I transferred here from Arizona was just from talking to Coach Olsen," Stadelmann said. "He was very open and excited and he had so many ideas that he wanted to get done. I felt really comfortable here and I was excited to try and take part in helping Coach out with achieving these goals and being part of a rebuilding phase. From the moment I got here I felt like I was a part of something special."
In addition to the support of her teammates and coaches, Stadelmann admits that the completion of NC State's new tennis facility, the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Complex, will bring an unmeasured number of benefits to the team.
"When I first came to NC State some of the seniors had told me about the facilities and how things would be changing at NC State," Stadelmann said. "I think that this new facility shows that this university is committed to establishing a competitive program and that they are willing to give our coaches and athletes the tools that are needed to successfully compete on this level."
In addition to helping out the team, Stadelmann also shares the idea that the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Complex will help NC State usher in a new era of women's tennis by serving as recruiting gem.
"This facility is really a trump card, in my mind, as far as recruiting goes," Stadelmann said. "I know a lot of girls coming out of high school take a hard look at the facilities of the school's that are recruiting them and if I was in that situation today I would definitely be blown away by this place. A lot of colleges don't have indoor courts, so just being able to practice regardless of the weather, both indoors and out, is very valuable."
Stadelmann, a math education major, has also been successfully juggling a full course load each semester. In the heat of last season, Stadelmann collected a 3.229 GPA in the classroom.
"Being a student athlete just takes a lot of organization," Stadelmann said. "You have to have good relationships with your teachers because you will be in and out of class due to traveling during the season and you don't want them to think that you are blowing their class off. When you look at the calendar during the season and see that you are going to be gone for the next four weekends, you really have to sit down and get all of that work done ahead of time so that you don't dig yourself into a hole and struggle to get your work finished. It's kind of like students that have a job, but I would say it's probably a lot more fun for us."
This summer, Stadelmann has been committed to improving her game and staying healthy.
"Last season I got sick a lot, so this year I want to stay healthy and work my way back into the singles lineup," Stadelmann said. "You always want to be the best that you can, and in tennis every spot can determine whether or not your team wins. I want to contribute to every match that I can and help this team win some battles."
The odds for a special season next year are in NC State's favor, with the team returning all but two members of this past season's squad. Coupling the opening of the J.W. Isenhour Tennis Complex with the team's intense commitment and practice, the Wolfpack will continue to work towards it goal of establishing itself as a national competitor.
