University of Minnesota Athletics
Gopher Spotlight: Katie Schau
9/15/2015 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
Feature written by Rachel Timmerman
Athletic Communications student intern
Setter Katie Schau was ready to be back and playing on her home court. After two tournaments away, the Diet Coke Classic served as the home opener for the Gophers.
And the she couldn't be happier to be back.
"We're so lucky that we get to play here," the Richland, Michigan native said. "Going away on travel trips, we get to see how special the Pav is. No one has a crowd base like we do."
The first away matches allowed the Maroon and Gold to battle tough teams Texas A&M and Stanford. Though the Gophers started out with two losses, Schau sees it as a learning experience.
"I think it was good that we were challenged early," Schau said. "It taught us a lot about ourselves and let us know what we need to work on going forward."
The junior even got to try out a different position, showing off her back row skills as a defensive specialist in the match against Stanford.
"I learned a lot that weekend," Schau said. "I got to play a few different positions so I saw different aspects of the game."
Schau and the Gophers were able to build off those first two losses, only to make changes and come out of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge with two wins, their first of this early season. On the weekend, Schau had 27 digs and a service ace.
In the past two seasons, Schau played in 143 sets, with a career-high 53 assists and match-high 43 assists.
"Entering into junior year is great because being an upperclassman, I've done it all before," Schau said. "This group of women are very special so I'm happy to be able to work with all of them."
Off the court, Schau majors in chemical engineering, and earned Academic All-Big Ten last season.
That hard work will certainly transfer into the season for Schau and the team.
"I think we're just going to have a season where we work really hard together in order to play as a team," Schau said. "We're gonna go out and attack every match and see what we can do."
