Aug. 21, 2014
The University of Notre Dame volleyball team welcomed six freshmen to the program last week as preseason practice got underway. The group comes to ND from California, Indiana, Kansas and Ohio and covers pretty much every position on the court. In a new Q&A series, it’s time for Irish fans to meet the group and learn a little more about them leading up to Notre Dame’s first match at No. 12 Minnesota August 29. Stay tuned over the next five days as Sam Fry, Natalie Johnson, Jo Kremer, Sydney Kuhn and Maddie Plumlee answer a variety of hard-hitting questions.
First up: Setter Maddie Dilfer.
Hometown: Saratoga, CA
High School: Valley Christian High School
Potential Major: Undecided
The best thing about my hometown: It’s 30 minutes from the Pacific Ocean, an hour from San Francisco and four hours from Lake Tahoe, my favorite place on earth.
Favorite place on campus so far: The lake and grotto
What drew me to ND: Great athletics and academics and amazing community feel
A hobby that most people wouldn’t know about: Watching baseball, but a lot of people know that about me. I don’t really have any unknown hobbies
Favorite app on phone: SportsCenter
Sport I’d play if it wasn’t volleyball: Swimming
Game-day superstition: Don’t have any
What makes volleyball so special to me: It takes a whole team to succeed. I’ve been blessed to have been put in great volleyball environments with great teams and coaches, and I’ve met some amazing people through the sport.
Favorite food: Sushi
Favorite TV Show: NCIS Los Angeles or Hawaii Five-0
Secret (or not so secret) talent: Im pretty untalented in this regard, but if I had to choose … I can touch my tongue to my nose, haha.
How my teammates would describe me: Weird, competitive, determined and likes to lead
Personal possession I couldn’t live without: My phone
The people I look up to the most and why: My parents (Trent and Cassandra Dilfer) because they have always been there for me, have sacrificed so much for me and are extremely hard working and selfless individuals.
Advice that has stuck with me: “Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you deal with it.” – Charles R. Swindoll
–ND–