CORPUS CHRISTI – Throughout the year, GoIslanders.com's Christina Boothe will feature
student-athletes from each of our 15 sports. Every Monday, we will bring you a Q&A session with a student-athlete, while Wednesday we will feature an in-depth story of a student-athlete. Be sure to keep tabs on GoIslanders.com as well as our Facebook (Islanders Athletics) and Twitter/Instagram (Go_Islanders) pages throughout the year for more information.
Islanders Volleyball is off with a bang, and plenty of new freshmen are garnering time on the court and hanging with Islanders seasoned veterans. One of the freshman stars, Brittany Gilpin, is hanging with the best at 93 kills and 15 matches played. After Friday afternoon's match in the Emerald Beach Classic, Gilpin took the time to answer some questions for GoIslanders.
GoIslanders.com (GI): Welcome to the Island University. Are you enjoying your time here?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): I am. I love everyone, and I love the environment. It's so nice.
GoIslanders.com (GI): You were a top 15 percent graduate from Westside and an athlete and helped lead your team to district. As an athlete and excellent student, how have the time management skills you learned in high school changed in college, where you have had to be on the road for 11 straight matches of your freshman year?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): It's different here. It wasn't that hard my senior year. My time management has improved, because if you don't stay on top of things here, you will fall behind. So it's definitely improved since high school.
GoIslanders.com (GI): You are doing great for your freshman year. How does that boost your confidence to feel like you can hang with the upperclassman?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): My confidence has improved as I have been playing more. The other girls have started to trust me, and once you get the trust of your teammates, your confidence rises. When the other girls help me out, I feel much better and more comfortable on the court.
GoIslanders.com (GI): You lettered in volleyball all four years at Westside high school. What was your most memorable experience as a Wolf?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): Winning districts completely my senior year. We had a rival- Bellaire, who we had never beat before. So when we beat them twice, it was awesome.
GoIslanders.com (GI): What are you looking forward to most about playing college volleyball?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): I hope we win conference this year. That's the goal. All the seniors are talking about it, and I think we can definitely do it this year so I'm excited about it. Then hopefully we will advance to the NCAA championships.
GoIslanders.com (GI): Do you have any specific goals that you look to accomplish during your years here?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): Personally, I want to make a name for myself. I want to be known on campus. As a team, I want to win conference every year. I want to win as many matches as we can.
GoIslanders.com (GI): Was there a specific moment for you here so far where you knew you made the right decision to come to Texas A&M - Corpus Christi and play volleyball?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): Actually, the first match that we played was that moment for me. I was on the court and it just felt right. The coaches have so much confidence in you here. I feel like I can trust everyone on my team. It feels like home.
GoIslanders.com (GI): As a final note, what has been your favorite college experience so far?
Brittany Gilpin (BG): We went to California for a tournament. The competition was great and we stuck with everyone. That boosted our confidence and we came in this weekend knowing that we could do well because of that.
For all the latest on Islanders Volleyball, like the team on Facebook (IslandersVolleyball) and follow them on Twitter and Instagram (@IslandersVB).
