Tuesday afternoon, less than an hour before the women's basketball team headed to Texas, coach Gail Goestenkors fielded questions from the media. On the table next to the tape recorders and microphones sat a stuffed gerbil named Homey--complete with a cowboy hat and boots--ready to blend with the locals in San Antonio.
Goestenkors laughed as the reporters quizzed her about Homey, which had once been the pet of Sheana Mosch. However, after his death, he was resurrected by a taxidermist, and now, Homey is the team's newest good luck charm.
"We have a show-and-tell that we do," sophomore Vicki Krapohl said. "And so [Sheana] brought Homey in for her show-and-tell, it was probably late ACC season. And so he was just kind of sitting up there for the next game, so we decided to put a bubble to make him say something. Then that kind of transpired to every game.... Homey had to be with us. Now he's kind of like our locker room superstition."
Although Homey drives the Blue Devils to victory, he's also a symbol for the light, fun-loving attitude that has allowed Duke to succeed throughout the season. It's an attitude that starts with Goestenkors, who over the course of the season, has learned about coaching and herself through the team.
"I've always taken basketball very seriously, but I also like to have a good time," Goestenkors said. "This team has had the rare ability to make fun of one another, make fun of themselves both on and off the court. Usually I try to keep it off the court, because when you're on the court it's serious. But this year, when we need to be serious we are, but we can also laugh at one another during games, during stressful situations, but then keep our focus. They've just made things so much easier for me to relax and laugh and understand that we can still have a focus, but have fun as well."
Minutes before Goestenkors entered the press room Tuesday, Iciss Tillis entertained the crowd with imitations of her coach, mocking some of the things she said. A few other Duke players sat beside Tillis, egging her on and laughing.
The scene was the same after the team beat South Carolina to advance to the Final Four, and has been the same for most of the season, as the eight players bonded together with a common goal. It quickly became clear that the players and the coaches love being a team just as much as they love playing basketball.
"This has been the most fun year ever for me as a coach, and that's excluding all the wins," Goestenkors said. "The wins have just been a great bonus, but this team has been fantastic and a lot of fun to be around. I think our team chemistry and the joy that we have that we share has enabled us to go undefeated in the league and win the conference tournament championship again. I think we've been very loose, but able to step on the floor we've had great chemistry and I think that's made the difference."
Goestenkors evolution doesn't just come off the court, but on it as well. This will be her second trip to the Final Four, and she is already anticipating the edge her experience will have.
She said that in 1999, she was easily bogged down by the stress and the busy schedule that comes along with the weekend--and that doesn't even include the time spent with the team.
"It was very frustrating," Goestenkors said. "I wanted to be with my team, back in the room, watching tape. This year, I'm trying to do as much prep work as I can. I know now what to expect."
Having the experience of a Final Four isn't the only thing different about this year's trip to San Antonio. The team's success has allowed it to fall into an unusual position. With the men's team exiting the NCAA Tournament earlier than expected, the women will be the only Duke basketball program heading to a Final Four this season. In 1999, the Blue Devils had to share the spotlight with the men's squad.
With all of the attention on the women's team, it appears that the stage is set for the Blue Devils and Goestenkors to do something special, even more special than what they've already done as a program and as a team--win a national championship.
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