This month, I had the 15th episode of my podcast “Work Hard, Play Harder” with Southwest Minnesota State University volleyball players Natalee Rolbiecki and McKenzie Tolk. This week, I am dropping episode 16 with SMSU volleyball’s Rachel Fink, Alisa Bergen and Meg Schmidt, three seniors that are enjoying their last ride with the team.

The three Mustangs come from different backgrounds but are now looked at as the veteran leaders of the team. Each advocated for their love for sports, each other, and family on the podcast. This is one of the more engaging, fun, laughable podcasts that you will ever watch and it’s because of Bergen, Fink and Schmidt’s chemsitry as athletes and people.

The podcast is called “Work Hard, Play Harder” because that’s how I like to live my life. It’s about finding out your “why” and getting to know yourself beyond your occupation. The podcast is informative about what you should do, but it also asks fun questions as well. Building connections and being able to be relatable is an important aspect of my podcast as well.

In this podcast episode, we get into questions about some fun memories they had from playing sports as a Mustang. We also get into why they chose SMSU and their “why” of playing sports at an early age. Bergen, Fink and Schmidt spoke on what it would feel like wearing a Mustang uniform for the final time.

“I think it is going to be bittersweet,” Bergen said. “How much time, energy and commitment that you’ve poured into this sport. It is going to be weird to leave a team aspect behind as well as that competition level.”

“I know after my last game I will bawl my eyes out,” Fink said. “I would be so grateful to play for a program like this. The relationships that I have built with this team will go beyond volleyball.”

“I think it will be an emotional time for me because you put your four or five years of everything into this,” Schmidt said. “You want to try to enjoy every moment that you have with your teammates and playing volleyball because you never know when it is your last.”

They added that their plans of what they would like to do post graduation, also adding some advice for the freshman and high school seniors that want to play collegiate volleyball. Anyone that loves to laugh and have a good time will love this episode. It will also show how three people from different backgrounds can form a bond that allows them to succeed on and off the court. Come out and support Bergen, Fink, Schmidt and the rest of the Mustangs volleyball team this season!