After briefly talking with former Arizona volleyball setter Paige Weber, it’s easy to realize she’s outgoing, passionate and doesn’t take herself too seriously.
In July, her personality and athleticism were both recognized when Weber received the 2010-11 Pac-10 Tom Hansen Conference Medal, an award given to two seniors — a female and male athlete from each conference school — recognizing their accomplishments in both academics and athletics.
Arizona football’s Brooks Reed was the male award-recipient for the Wildcats., The award is a relatively new honor (starting in 2008-09) to honor Tom Hansen, the ex-commissioner who oversaw the Pac-10 for 26 years before retiring in 2009.
Only two weeks ago, Weber said farewell to Tucson after graduating with a degree in accounting. She moved back to her home state of Indiana, where she currently plans to reside.
The Daily Wildcat was able to catch up with the award-winner through a phone interview, where we chatted about winning the award and life after Arizona.
*Daily Wildcat: How are you? And, how is being back home in Indiana? *
Paige Weber: I’m great and it’s good, I guess. I feel like I’m on a summer break of sorts, because I just graduated at the end of summer. I’ve only been done for two weeks.
*Do you plan on pursuing a career in accounting? *
No, hopefully not. (Laughs) That sounds awful.
Well, I like your honesty. So what’s next then?
I’m probably going to take one of the graduate school tests like the LSAT, just to have it and keep it close to me. If I decided to go back to school, which is a pretty high possibility at this point, I would have that done. I’m not in a rush to get a job. I just got out, so I’m going to take my break while I’ve got it.
*Sounds like a plan. So onto volleyball. Congratulations on the award, did you have any idea you would get it? *
Actually, I was really surprised. I didn’t know it existed. (Laughing) My mom texted me and was like, “Congratulations on your award,” and I was like, “What are you talking about? I don’t play volleyball at Arizona anymore, mom.” And, then she said I should check the website more often, because I’m obviously really disconnected. (Laughs) I was very honored and really excited to receive this all-encompassing award. It reflects all of the things you try to work on, not just as an athlete, but also as a person.
What do you miss most about being on the team so far?
I miss all of the girls and the coaches. It’s kind of like being a part of a family. It’s really hard to go from being a part of a team, to not having that kind of team-aspect around you. It’s like, “what am I doing, who am I doing it with?” That’s where I’m at right now. I’m with my friends up here, but it’s not quite the same as being with people everyday, all united and working towards the same goal.
*What do you not miss? *
What I don’t miss are the really, really long days. Those days where it’s just really long, and you’re stressed out and you’ve got a lot of school work and you just don’t think you’re going to have time to get it all in. There was just so much on your plate. I don’t miss that. But, at the same time, I don’t know if I would trade that for this (being home). (Laughs) I think I could go back to that.
Do you plan on playing anywhere else?
It’s a long story. I plan on playing, but it got put on hold for the moment, but it’s still in the works.
*What aspect of setting do you think is underestimated the most? *
PW: The amount of work that goes into it all of the time. There’s a lot of work that goes into every position on the volleyball court, but in the setting position, it’s not just about being a good setter. You have to be the person that calls out the plays, defense, blocking, the one out there leading the team and the one that’s trying to out speed the other team. We always used to joke, “It’s like being the quarterback.” Or, it’s like a chess match; you’re trying to set your team up against the other team, and place your pieces in the best spots against the other team.
Nice analogies. So since you’re done with volleyball and school, for now, have you done anything fun or crazy to celebrate?
Well I went on a vacation. I went to the Dominican Republic and actually left the day before Hurricane Irene swept in. We got so lucky. We stayed at a resort and it was so nice. The weather was perfect and there weren’t a lot of people. The day before we left, hundreds of people showed up and we leave the day before Irene comes in. It was awesome — we had a blast.
