Lindsey Schultz is a senior middle blocker on the SIU volleyball team. Schultz led the team with a .355 hitting percentage last season, second in the SIU single season history books behind current head coach Sonya Locke’s mark of .369 back in 1981. She recently took time to speak with Christopher Morrical of the DAILY EGYPTIAN.

Daily Egyptian:What got you started playing volleyball?

Lindsey Schultz:Well, I guess I started playing in middle school because all my friends were playing. I thought it was fun and I stuck with it ’cause I was tall. Then I started getting athletic around my junior year in high school, and things just kind of fell into place.

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DE:What’s the difference between starting and coming off the bench?

LS:It’s kind of nice to start because you get to have the momentum of coming off right from the start with everybody else right after the National Anthem is playing. Coming off the bench, you get to bring something to the team if they are lacking something or if they have a fire, you get to add to that. It’s got its advantages and disadvantages.

DE:Is there extra pressure being a senior?

LS:Yeah, there is extra pressure because everyone is counting on you. You’re a veteran. You’ve been here for four years. We have two very young middles; one is a sophomore, one is a freshman. Both of them need guidance on how this game is supposed to be played. Carrie [Shephard] didn’t get much time last year and she got to watch us both play last year. Marissa [Washington] is totally new. You’re supposed to set a good example for them.

DE:What are your plans for after graduation?

LS:Well, I’m planning on going to grad school for civil engineering. I’m gonna specialize in structures. Where is the question. I might stay here. I might go closer to home, maybe at Purdue. Maybe I’ll go as far as Arizona. I’m trying to make that decision.

DE:What is your game preparation like?

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LS:Well, I do the same thing the whole team does. We shake our booty to “Hoochie Momma” before every game. Just get yourself pumped up any way you can. Take a nap. Anything that feels good. It’s always nice when the family is in town, when you can go out for a nice lunch before a home game. “Hoochie Momma” is the best way to get myself pumped up. It’s just a song. I don’t know who sings it. (Starts singing.) “You ain’t nothing but a hoochie momma!”

DE:What is your favorite part about Carbondale?

LS:I guess I like that there is such a wide variety of things you can do. Being close to St. Louis, if you wanna go to a big city, it’s not too far. If you wanna stay in town, there’s plenty of things to do. You can go out dancing or go to a beer garden just to hang around and chill. There are movie theaters. There’s just a wide variety of things to do. There’s the outdoor stuff too.

DE:How long did you live in Chicago?

LS:Until I was in second grade, so until I was, like, 7. We lived 15 minutes away from downtown. It was nice. We just visited there. We drove by my old house. It hasn’t changed.

DE:What were you in Chicago for?

LS:I went to Cyprus this summer. I was flying out of O’Hare, so I decided to spend the day downtown at Michigan Ave.

DE:Compare Valparaiso to Carbondale.

LS:Valparaiso is a little bit bigger, but there are a wider variety of things to do here in Carbondale. There’s more places to go out at night. The family isn’t here. I have my own place here. In Valparaiso, everybody knows you. Everywhere you go, you’re gonna see somebody. Carbondale seems a lot newer ’cause I haven’t lived here as long.

DE:Is there a secret to getting such good grades?

LS:Hard work. Lots of time and lots of effort. Every weeknight, staying up ’til midnight doing homework.

DE:Do you have a sports idol?

LS:I’d say Gabby Reese. A lot of people didn’t think of her as a volleyball player at first. She kind of jumped around sports at first and that’s the kind of stuff I did in high school. I couldn’t make up my mind between basketball and volleyball. She did the same thing when she was a lot younger. She decided to play volleyball, and she’s a real icon for it now.

DE:What’s your favorite SIU in-game moment?

LS:My sophomore year, I hit an over-pass. That’s when the other team passes it over the net, and you hit it as soon as it comes over. It hit the eight-foot line and Sonya went down and went like this. (Makes the Wayne’s World “We’re not worthy” motion.) I don’t think she’s done that to me in a game before.

DE:What’s your favorite TV show?

LS:I like them all, but I’d have to say Phoebe because she’s always so happy-go-lucky.

DE:What’s your favorite movie?

LS:”Mulan.” The Disney cartoon. There is all the upbeat songs. Nobody thought she could do it. She came back and saved China.

DE:What is the last CD you bought?

LS:Enya. It’s relaxing. I listen to it on road trips. Almost everyone on the team has asked me to make a copy of it just because when we’re on the bus and you’re all stressed out and you’re trying to do homework, it helps out.

Reporter Christopher Morrical can be reached at [email protected]