Tuozzo Transforming Into Vocal Leader for Volleyball Cats
When Molly Tuozzo arrived on the Kentucky campus three years ago, she was a quiet person by nature. However, heading into her junior year and serving as the team’s libero, Tuozzo has learned to be more vocal. What has led to this transformation?
“I think just experience and also maturity,” Tuozzo said. “I think I’ve gotten so comfortable with this group of people and I’ve gotten older and I’ve put myself in uncomfortable situations to get comfortable with it. I think a little bit of it is getting myself out there and pushing myself because I’m never going to get better at public speaking if I’m not putting myself in uncomfortable situations.”
Tuozzo believes that it is especially important for her to be a vocal leader from her particular position.
“I think libero is especially a super vocal position and I’ve been trying to grow in that area,” she said. “I’ve always led by example and not had a huge voice but I’ve come to the understanding that it’s a major thing to do and especially if I want to be a leader on this team, I really just have to start being vocal from the beginning and push myself, even when I don’t want to speak or we’re down.”
The Cats have won eight consecutive Southeastern Conference titles and are motivated to win another one this season.
“I think just winning the SEC again, the two SEC championships (regular season and tournament),” Tuozzo said. “I think that’s obviously a motivator. After SEC is a national championship, so I think that’s really a motivator for us. We’re all such a great group of girls and we’re still motivated this year, we’re playing for each other and not just ourselves. We’re playing for something bigger than us. They are my biggest motivators.”
Tuozzo believes that the team got a good head start in the spring when every player on the current roster was on campus.
“We had everyone in the spring, so we had the great opportunity of using that time to get close to each other then, and not in the summer or the fall,” Tuozzo said. “So, I think we really utilized that time to grow closer.”
Tuozzo will be the anchor of Kentucky’s back row defense again this season. And while her play on the floor has always been stellar, her ability to be a vocal leader for the Cats is now also in that category.
