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Dons Viking Voyage: Q & A With Coach Haave
May 22, 2009
2009 Tour Central: Dons Viking Voyage
(San Francisco) As part of the on-going coverage of the up coming USF Women's Basketball "Viking Voyage" to Scandinavia, www.USFDons.com sat down with Head Coach Tanya Haave for a question and answer session about the looming trip.
Why take your team on a trip like this?
"There are many reasons I wanted to take this tour. First, the educational experience for our team will be unparallel. The cultural experiences will be priceless and learning about different ways of life will be great for our team, especially since most of them have never traveled overseas before. It also provides us with a great chance to work on team bonding and build upon on team chemistry with our core group of girls that return next year. Along those lines, it's also a nice reward for our departing seniors - Shay, Leslie and Alexis- to thank them for all they have given to our program.
"Another reason I wanted to take this trip was to give our girls international playing experience, while also broadening our basketball horizons. There's enough of a subtle difference between the two styles of play to make a difference. We are going to have to adapt to a different court, a different country, and differences in officiating.
"Finally, for our seniors or those girls who aspire to play overseas, it's a great chance for teams over there to get a look at them. On the same hand, it provides us an opportunity to recruit a bit and see what type of recruitable athletes these teams have, that may be of interest to us."
How long has this trip been in the works?
"We've been working on putting this trip together for about two years now. We were supposed to go last year, but had to postpone it for different reasons. Now that we are so close to it, it feels surreal that we are actually leaving in just a few days."
Why Scandinavia?
"I chose Scandinavia for three reasons. One, I thought that basketball-wise the level would be challenging but a good equal to our team. Scandinavia is also one of the last leagues that isn't a "professional league", which means we can be playing against recruitable athletes that we may not have had a chance to see otherwise.
"Two, for most of our team, it will be the first time they have traveled overseas. Scandinavia is an easy place for travelers like that. Despite the language barriers, they will be able to get by with English and the cultures are similar, despite being drastically different. In addition, the people of Scandinavia are genuine and welcoming; all-in-all Scandinavians are a good solid group of people with a wonderful heritage and culture.
"Finally, for our departing seniors that may have an interest in playing overseas, it's a good opportunity for them to get some looks from teams that they may have a chance to play for in Europe."
Finally Coach, what are you most excited about on this trip?
"I am excited to watch our team experience all the things we've talked about. I lived in Europe for a while and I am excited to provide our girls with some of the same unique opportunities I had while living there. It is fun to see them get excited about it and some of the things that we get today. For example, today when we told them we would be taking a one-night cruise between Oslo and Copenhagen, their faces lit up and they all got really excited. Overall, its moments like that, that makes this a satisfying experience."
The Dons depart from War Memorial Gym in the early morning of Sunday. Throughout the 11-day trip, USF will post blogs, daily photo galleries and game recaps from overseads. San Francisco will play five games while in Europe and will return to the Hilltop June 3. Please continue to return to www.USFDons.com for daily updates. Also, make sure to visit our tour central page, 2009 Dons Viking Voyage.
