Senior heats up at right time
USF has been going through a rough patch lately, but senior Andrea Rodriguez Gomez is starting to pick up her play.
Over the past weekend, Gomez earned her first honor roll nomination and moved into fourth on the all-time blocks list for the Bulls (5-6).
“It’s really exciting that I get to have that under my belt during my last year,” Gomez said regarding the honor roll nomination.
Despite Gomez’s strong play, the Bulls lost two of their three matches over the weekend. But though the Bulls struggled, Gomez still believes the losses are
helping the team to grow and get prepared for important conference games down the road.
“We’re learning a lot with these losses and it’s not something that’s bringing us down,” she said. “It’s only motivating us to play better when the season really starts.”
The young Bulls are learning how to play as a team as the season goes on. This is why USF coach Courtney Draper said she likes that they have a tough schedule to begin the season.
“Our biggest goal is to prepare for conference,” Draper said. “By playing these tough opponents early, it’s pushing the kids to play their best and see what they are capable of.”
The Bulls have had no troubles on defense this year, ranking first in the conference in blocks and second in digs. The errors however, have been holding the Bulls back from reaching their true potential.
“We can be our own worst enemy,” Gomez said. “When we don’t commit errors, we can beat
anyone.”
Going forward, the team will look to work these kinks out in practice and bring their offensive play up to par with the defense, she said. With the Bulls in such a tough part of the schedule, time is of the essence to fix these nagging problems.
Going into the weekend in Chicago, the Bulls face Northwestern and IUPUI on Friday at 1 p.m. and
6 p.m. They’ll finish Saturday,
playing Miami (Ohio) at
9 p.m.
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