North Carolina outside hitter Taylor Leath grew up down the road from Penn State, home of one of the most successful women's volleyball programs of all time. Now a redshirt junior and the reigning Atlantic Coast Conference player of the year, Leath wants nothing more than to bring that kind of success to Chapel Hill.

In this interview, conducted a few days before the start of competition, Leath discussed this year's No. 12 Tar Heel squad with FloVolleyball, including how the concept of mindfulness and being present has radically changed the team's perspective.

See Leath and the Tar Heels in action at the SEC vs. ACC Challenge at the Puerto Rico Classic, September 2-3, LIVE right here on FloVolleyball.



FloVolleyball: How was preseason training for you guys?

Leath: Preseason went really well. There was a lot to figure out. We've been working through last spring and through the summer and to finally be able to have instructions from coaches and to work on more specific things was really useful for us in order to get that extra step better that we need for this season.

How are all the newcomers doing?

They're doing great. We have four newcomers -- three freshmen and a transfer from Georgia Southern -- and they've all acclimated really well to our team. Honestly, you would never even know that they're new. In terms of personality and spirit and work ethic, we're all on the same page, so it's been a joy to work with them.

How has preseason been different for you this year compared to the years past?

[It's different] just in terms of my role in preseason. Needing to know and be consistent every single day has been different and needing to be that person who sets a good example for all the younger girls. We have four newcomers, so making sure they know the type of effort we need to put out every day, the focus, the discipline that we need to have. Other than that, the expectations from the team aren't any different and how they're coaching us isn't any different than when I was a freshman. For me, it's just growing up into my role and up into being the captain of this team.


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How has practice and training changed since your freshman year?

There's been a lot more management of our bodies and making sure that you're really making your reps count and having mindful reps. So it's not like we're taking 100 swings at balls, you might only get 10-20 swings in one practice. It's not about the volume as much as if you're mindful about what you're doing that day or during that session.

Practices, they might not go as long, we don't practice for three hours or have double-days every day, but every single time we're in the gym, you're mentally exhausted from having a mindful practice.

What is Coach Sagula like in the gym?

Coach is a very funny man. He honestly cares about his players a lot, and he pushes us really hard. He will yell sometimes, but he's not always a yeller, he just really like to make sure that people are understanding what he's saying, so he'll say it multiple times different ways to help make sure that you're getting the message that he wants relayed.

This is my fourth season here, (and) I've loved playing for him every single moment that I've been able to train in that gym. Eve and Tyler and new additions like Gavin, they've all been great.

What did you learn about this year's team in the Blue & White scrimmage?

The Blue/White was awesome. [You're] just basically finding the new personality of the team, how we want to define ourselves as a team, in terms of just having the same energy and having fun and having that high intensity and I think we're learning how to do that with the girls that are going to be on the court.

Coach Sagula mentioned that redshirt freshman Holly Carlton will likely get some playing time at the setter position. How has she been connecting with hitters in practice?

Holly's awesome. I think it's very different when you have a 6-foot-7 person setting to you. I think not only is it that she can connect really well, but she's also willing to work really hard and she's great with feedback. She just will ask 100 questions and make sure she's delivering the ball that she needs to deliver, and at the same time as a hitter you want to make sure that you're doing the best you can with her sets because you know that she's putting in the work. You know that Holly's really determined to get it to the right spot and make the right decisions.

What were some takeaways from last year's NCAA tournament loss to UCLA?

We actually had a team meeting about what mantra we want to set for this season and we [decided on] "be present." In terms of just be present in your training, be present in the moment and don't take anything for granted.

Last year, obviously we're not very happy with the outcome of that game, and I don't know if everyone was 100 percent there. Maybe looking ahead or looking way too far ahead and not present in that moment with that opponent. So this year, we're really trying to make sure that every single person that's in front of us, team that's in front of us, every rep that's in front of us, that we're present in that moment and we're not taking that for granted. I think we've learned a lot from last year and are trying to use that to get better this year.

You guys have a pretty intense preseason, what are you most looking forward to about kicking the season off?

It will be awesome to have an opponent across the net. In the gym, it's been us against each other and it will be awesome to just have another opponent and to be a little battle-tested and see what this team has. Playing in practice is awesome and you can see how the team will work and how it will function, but to play against an opponent is just a completely different thing and playing in front of fans. Big Ten volleyball is a big deal and going to Wisconsin, even though our first match is against Minnesota, I'm sure there will be a good crowd there. Sometimes when the lights come on, things light up and I'm just really excited for that period.

What are the goals of Carolina volleyball this year?

The goal is Kansas City. That's what we want. Kansas City. We want to be there and we want to win our last match.

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