Marquette women’s basketball coach Carolyn Kieger is in her first year as the team’s coach, after being one of the best players in Marquette history.

Marquette Wire: Obviously you had a lot of success here as a player, how does it feel to be back?

Carolyn Kieger: It’s one of those things that you can’t really put into words. It’s a place that I’ve always wanted to be back at and the fact that it’s actually happening … day by day I just try to take it in and realize you’re at your dream job. This program has done so much for me, personally, that the opportunity to give back is a once in a lifetime one and I know that I’m not going to take it for granted for one day.

MW: Do you think that you’re more prepared to coach here because you played here?

CK: I think it helps. It helps from a recruiting standpoint. I can really sell this university. I can sell the strengths of it, the classroom atmosphere and knowing what it was like, the family feel to it. When I’m actually selling recruiting, people are believing me because they know it’s hands on, I would say that’s the biggest benefit. But also these girls have adapted and bought in so quickly because I’m an alum, because they know how much I care about this place.

MW: Being a new coach with mainly freshmen and seniors, how much do you rely on team leadership?

CK: Huge, we just got done meeting with the captains right now. It’s something we talk about daily. We also have a leadership curriculum that we’re taking through the team all season long and each week we focus on a new leadership topic. I believe it’s really essential for a team, not just to develop your captains, but to develop leaders from the freshmen on. The whole team goes through it and I think it’s been something that’s been really valuable for them so far.

MW: What’s that dynamic like having mainly seniors and freshman?

CK: I think it’s perfect, honestly. The freshmen need it with this big freshman class and the seniors are able to step up and feel more ownership of the team than they have in years past, so I think it’s a perfect time to have that group of seniors and that group of freshmen. Now, next year will be a completely different story, but this year for my first year, I’ve been very blessed with a great senior class that has really helped me with these freshmen.

MW: With the way that the previous coach left and how some of the players left with her, do you feel like it has been difficult gaining trust with some of your players?

CK: Not at all. We’ve really improved the team chemistry and just the staff bonding since Europe. I think the Europe trip really helped us. We came in right away and were able to go spend 10 days together and not only learn each other, but get to know each other’s strengths and weaknesses and I think that helps from a trust standpoint and knowing what my expectations are. I think we are night and day from where we were when we first left for France that first day.

MW: You played for Terri Mitchell, what’s it been like taking over her job?

CK: It’s been unique. She’s always been somebody that’s been a mentor of mine and somebody that I’ve really respected in this business and looked up to so she’s been very helpful with me. We talk on a regular basis. It’s kind of a situation where, in my mind I always wanted to take over for her at this place, at my alma mater, so everyday I’m just going to try to make her proud and put this place in the direction that she had it rolling.

MW: Last year, this team was No. 1 in rebounding and No. 2 in points scored in the conference, a lot of that had to do with Katherine Plouffe. How do you replace her?

CK: Hah, by committee. You definitely can’t do it with one person, just her size alone and her knack for putting the ball in the hoop is something that we’re going to have to do with multiple different players. It’s definitely going to be a different style of play and we won’t have that go-to back to the basket player like her, but we’re going to do it with speed, athleticism and I think defense is going to be a lot different. We’re going to create a lot of havoc on that end to create more points for us offensively.

MW: From what you’ve seen thus far, where do you think this team can improve most?

CK: Right now I would probably say rebounding and taking care of the ball, which is expected because we’re trying to get them to play faster than they ever have in their life, so there’s going to be that period where they’re kind of getting used to the speed. Turnovers, in my mind, were something that I knew was going to be something that we had to fix early on.

MW: What are some goals that you have for this year?

CK: Really my goal is that we keep getting better every day. I know that’s pretty cliche, but that’s honestly what we’re striving for, to get these players to get the best versions of themselves every single day. Obviously, we have team goals that we want to accomplish and that’s in-house and we talk about that every day. Clearly, I want to win a Big East title, but that’s something that we’re not overlooking and we’re not talking about that, we’re talking about one practice at a time.

MW: Have you and men’s coach Steve Wojciechowski been working together at all?

CK: Yeah, it’s been great. It’s perfect timing because we’re both going through the same things at the same time and we’ve had opportunities to ask questions and lean on each other a little bit, especially through the athletic director hiring and (University President Michael) Lovell. It’s been really good to have each other to get support from and ask questions, so for me it’s a blessing and I think he feels the same way, that this is all kind of happening at the same time and we have new coaches and new leadership.

MW: Do you think that it benefits both teams as far as with the players too?

CK: I do. I think the players have a new, fresh excitement and there’s a buzz around this whole building right now that’s like, fresh energy. I think everybody is benefiting from it and everybody is on the same page of “fresh start, let’s get going in the direction that we know this whole athletic department can go.”