Mind, body and soul

"Getting together is a beginning, staying together is progress, working together is success and winning together happens only with team work," are the words that echo from a sheet that was passed out to every member of the women's volleyball team.

Three sophomores, Kris Larsen, Dana Steigerwald and Pamela Rigor, reiterate this goal, saying that unity, bonding and consistency on the team will help them win.

The team began conditioning two weeks before school started on a mission to be unified and victorious, and all three want to be a part of this mission in every aspect.

So far the team has a 6-11 record going into their conference matches this week.

Head coach Kathy Argo said she has a set of goals for this season that has remained consistent throughout her 17 years of coaching at SF State.

"The players have to play with a positive competitive attitude, which means being able to play every point as if it was the last point you're playing," said Argo.

Larsen, Steigerwald and Rigor make it a point to follow that philosophy.

The three came in as freshmen and led the team in kills last year. The 19-year-olds are aggressive in saying they are striving for consistency in all areas.

"I try to be a consistent player in all my attributes," Rigor said. "I also think I'm a team leader, and I try to keep everyone fired up on the court."

Last year as center and outside hitter, Rigor ranked second on the team in kills with 166. She also placed fourth on the team in the digs category, with 219.

This year Rigor is an outside hitter, and has had 21 kills in a match against Masters College two weeks ago.

"She's just really versatile," says former Sports Information Director Kyle McRae. "She does a lot of things well."

Being the more outspoken of the three, Rigor admits there are times when she is discouraged, but she said that's when the team unity comes in. She said as a team they build a fire between each other.

"You know it's a unit when you can give a symbol, letter or number and the whole team understands it and knows what their job is on the court," said Rigor.

One way Rigor gets fired up and focused is by running the game through in her mind during the National Anthem.

"I mentally prepare myself before the game by visualizing myself digging a ball. I visualize everything I could do in a perfect form," she said. "I visualize the team on fire. I just concentrate on everything being perfect."

Rigor and her teammates have their own individual ways of pumping themselves up and preparing themselves mentally before a game, but there is also a time in which the team becomes one.

The trio explains that before every game the team finds a quiet, private area to go and establish individual goals for the match.

Argo said this format of goal-setting is something that she has always done with her teams.

"The purpose for this is to make them more active and prepare them for the mental part of the game," said Argo.

When she is by herself, Steigerwald has her own special way of game preparation.

"I listen to my favorite CD and I just get super fired-up," said Steigerwald. "I visualize also, I just do it to music."

When asked what kind of music she listens to, she laughingly said it's a Beastie Boys song called "Check Your Head."

Steigerwald, also an outside hitter, ranked first in kills last year, accumulating 199. She ranked third on the team with 226 digs. Her season helped her make the top five list in volleyball history at SF State, with 26 kills in one game. She is also ranked second overall in conference this season with 187 digs.

One of the many goals she has set for herself this season is to live up to her potential.

"I want to be a feared outside hitter," she said. "When we step on the court, I want the other team to say 'oh my god, that's San Francisco State.'"

Steigerwald said she plays the game because of the rush she gets right before a match. She said it's like a fire that comes over her when she's getting ready to play.

Larsen said she feels this same fire, but that sh

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