Mulflur Soaking In Ninth Trip To NCAA Championship
May 16, 2011
• NCAA Release: Huskies Making First Trip To NCAA Championship Since 2006
Mary Lou Mulflur is making her ninth trip to the NCAA championship with the Huskies, but this year's trip has a special feeling about it. After a tough regular season, the Huskies were rewarded with a shot at playing for the national title this week at Traditions Golf Course in Bryan, Texas from May 18-21. The Dawgs arrived in Texas on Sunday and busy getting a feel for the course. Mulflur caught up with GoHuskies.com on Monday evening to talk about her team's adventures through the first couple of days.
GoHuskies.com: How have the first days of the trip gone and what are your first impressions of Traditions Golf Course?
Mary Lou Mulflur: We like it a lot. It's a really nice golf course. It is in great shape. The greens are small, which are in great contrast to our greens at home at Washington National. They're really small, but they're not very fast. But they are in good shape and the ball rolls true. If you start it on the line you want, you're going to make some putts.
It was a little breezy today, but not `Texas winds'. I think the wind is supposed to pick up a bit on competition days but we had a good practice. It was warm, but not ridiculous by any stretch of the imagination.
We had no problems with our flight yesterday. It was a pretty easy evening and then it was nice that we had a later time (for Monday's practice round) so we didn't have to get up early, which was nice because of the time change. That gave us another day to acclimate ourselves.
So far, so good.
GoHuskies.com: What's the mentality of the team?
Mulflur: They're really pretty loose. I'd say for the most part they're pretty confident. We'll need to work on getting a little more confidence tomorrow, but I would say overall they are in a good frame of mind. I think they're looking at the golf course and thinking at our length that it is going to be an advantage to us. I even had one of them say to me today, `if we just play smart and hit to the middle of the green we could do really well.' It is having the discipline to do that instead of firing at pins that might be a little tricky. It sets up well for us and it's a very straight-forward golf course. It's kind of what-you-see is what-you-get. There is not really a lot of trickery to the course. We like it...we're feeling good.
GoHuskies.com: With limited experience on Traditions Golf Course, I heard new Washington women's basketball assistant Mike Neighbors has played the course many times and provided a lot of great tips for you?
Mulflur: He was great. He took about an hour with Andrea (VanderLende) and I on Wednesday and went over every hole with us. He kind of told us what to expect, the best places to hit it, best places to bail out. It was great.
When we went today, we weren't going in blind. It was really nice to have that in our back pocket.
And then we had A Ram (Choi) play in a AJGA tournament here. So, that also helps. We feel like even though none of us have played a college tournament here that we have some information that is helpful.
GoHuskies.com: Any surprises in your lineup of who think might step up to the challenge of the NCAA championship this week?
Mulflur: That's a tough question. The thing is that the team is so balanced and you know if I think I had to pick somebody to kind of step up it would be Kelli (Bowers). I think she was pretty frustrated with her play at regionals. She didn't have a particularly great week. The great thing about her though is she never lets it affect how she is with her teammates. She doesn't pout around and have a little pity party. She keeps a clear head and knows what's most important, so I'd expect her to have a great week.
GoHuskies.com: How has new volunteer assistant David Elaimy helped you on the course and how does he fit in with the team?
Mulflur: The kids really like him and he is a wonderful influence. He calls them to task about being responsible for their shots and makes them think about if they make a bad shot or a bad swing, why it happened and what got in the way. Usually it's stuff that is going on in our brain rather than the physicality of what they're doing. He really holds them accountable for that and has a great demeanor with them. I really enjoy having him around and I've known him for a long time. He's just really insightful, calm and never gets too amped up. He is a good compliment to me because I'm really intense out there.
GoHuskies.com: How has this trip compare to other trips to the NCAA championships you have made?
Mulflur: This one has to be more gratifying for just being here. We have had a rocky year...I think everyone on the team would agree. We have had a lot of bumps this year.
We didn't have a particularly good spring. We just couldn't seem to get ourselves together as one unit. Then, to come together like we did at the regional... I still marvel at Sadena's (Parks) 66 that second day. It was just incredible under the circumstances.
So, I would have to put this right up there with the most gratifying as far as getting here. Now what happens the next five days ... that is a different deal. But, just to be here with this particular group, it's really gratifying.
