March 27, 2006

FORT WORTH, Texas - Junior forward Angie Nickens took some time to answer questions about what she has been doing in the offseason. She scored two goals and assisted on two others this past fall for first-year head coach Dan Abdalla.

Q:How are spring drills going so far? What kinds of things have you been working on?

A:"Spring drills are going really well, our main focus has been defensive organization. We are working on how to read the game and give directional communication to each other to make the game more predictable and easier."

Q:You've had a practice under the lights since they were installed two weeks ago. What was that like and how excited are you and your teammates at playing home games at night?

A:"We are all so excited about the lights!! Our first practice under them however was quite cold, but still it was a great change. Next year is going to be awesome with the lights because hopefully we will have more fans. It helps that our fans won't have to be rushing from school and work to get out to the stadium to see us play."

Q:What have you been doing since the season ended to keep yourself in shape?

A:"To stay in shape we have been practicing on the field four days a week, lifting three days and doing pilates once a week. We mix in the occasional game on the weekend to see how far we've come. Overall, I think the team is pretty fit right now!"

Q:After a season in the Mountain West, what are your impressions of the league?

A:"In the Mountain West, the teams are much faster as far as speed is concerned and as a result, the pace of the game is much quicker. We have been working a lot on speed training and playing the ball quicker to help us really compete next season."