Accurate Assessment: Consistent Nelson key to Badgers' NCAA hopes
December 02, 2015 | Volleyball, Mike Lucas
Ever-efficient middle blocker Haleigh Nelson leads streaking Wisconsin into postseason
On pace to break Wisconsin's career record for hitting percentage, Haleigh Nelson is clearly adept at avoiding errors. They say no one is perfect, but the Badgers' middle blocker has spent her career building a level of consistency that gets her as close as anyone — something UW will rely on as it looks to make a run in the NCAA tournament.  |  From Varsity Magazine
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BY MIKE LUCAS
UWBadgers.com Senior Writer
Since Haleigh Nelson has expressed interest in maybe someday becoming a sportscaster — "I'm not camera shy and I'm a talker" — she was given a dry run as a color analyst.
Let's assume she was sitting alongside Jon Arias, the radio play-by-play voice of Wisconsin volleyball, for Thursday's first round NCAA tournament match against Oregon at the UW Field House.
How would Nelson describe the Badgers' 6-foot-4 middle blocker to the audience?
"That's a great question," she pondered. "How would I describe me?"
Nelson, the analyst, could start by pointing out that Nelson, a junior from Cary, North Carolina (just outside of Raleigh), is on pace to break the school record for career hitting percentage.
Not that Nelson pays attention to personal statistics, one way or another.
"As long as we're winning," she said, "it doesn't matter."
Nonetheless, Nelson ranks No. 2 in the Big Ten Conference and No. 11 nationally in hitting percentage through 30 starts and 105 sets this season.
"People will tell you that I don't like to make errors," she said. "So hitting percentage is important for the fact I don't like to make mistakes. But I really don't think much about the numbers."
Nelson, the analyst, could note that Nelson, the two-time UW captain, has a unique serve, one that has drawn favorable comments from many people, including U.S. national team coach Karch Kiraly.
"I do take pride in my serve," said Nelson, the team leader in service aces. "I didn't know it was going to be that effective and I worked on it the normal amount, then the results came.
"Now, I practice it all the time because I want to keep that level up there. I don't really try to do anything super special. Same stuff always — high contact, good hand contact.
"People have been saying it's unique (for a middle blocker). I kind of have high standards for myself. I expect myself to do well at the service line."
"When people tell me things that I should change or work on, I don't usually reject things like that. I'll try anything to be better. That's probably one of my strengths."
Nelson, the analyst, could talk about how Nelson, the emotional leader, is the product of a successful high school program in Raleigh; Cardinal Gibbons, which has won seven straight state titles.
Not even a move up in class from 3A to 4A could slow down the Crusaders, who have won 10 of the last 11 championships in North Carolina. Nelson contributed to four of those crowns.
"There's a little bit of pressure, I guess," Nelson said of sustaining such success. "But it was more cool to be a part of a program where every year the standard is to win a state championship."
Nelson, the analyst, could also bring up how Nelson, an avid paddle-boarder on Madison's lakes, didn't initially gravitate to volleyball as a youngster.
"I tried a lot of different sports and I loved every sport I played," she said. "I played soccer. I swam for awhile. I really loved basketball and I really didn't want to play volleyball.
"But the parent of one of my real good friends convinced me to play. I was tall and they were the coach so I said, 'OK, I'll try it out.'
"I wasn't very good at first so I got discouraged. But I stuck with it and by the time that I got to high school, I knew that was the sport that I wanted to play.
"I didn't really notice that I was way less athletic than maybe somebody else. I never really knew there were limitations until I started being recruited (by colleges).
"People started telling me that I was (lacking athleticism) and then I had to pay attention to it. So I guess I had to learn other ways to be good at volleyball other than jumping high and running fast.
"I've really taken advantage of a lot of the coaching I've had," she went on. "I've listened and taken in the information from a lot of different people and I've very open to trying new things.
"When people tell me things that I should change or work on, I don't usually reject things like that. I'll try anything to be better. That's probably one of my strengths."
Nelson, the analyst, could mention how Nelson, a fan of Girl Scout cookies (Thin Mints) and George Strait, has shown a strong willingness on the floor to make people around her better.
Truth is, if she was really doing the analysis, she would say as much.
"I like to think I'm consistent, I'm steady," she said. "I might not have a spectacular game very night. But the way I play, I really try to give my teammates the best opportunities to be successful."
Nelson, the player, not the analyst, cited one example: "If I'm serving, I want to put in a great serve for the blockers to make it easier for them to make reads."
Selfless might be the most appropriate way and/or word to describe Nelson.
"I try to be," she said. "I care a lot about my teammates. I care more about how they're doing maybe more than how I'm doing in the game."
That trait may actually come up during Thursday's radio broadcast of the Oregon-Wisconsin match, especially since the analyst is Pete Waite, the former UW coach who recruited Nelson.
When Kelly Sheffield replaced Waite and took over the program, there was concern on Nelson's part whether the Badgers would still be committed to her — a natural fear and byproduct of transition.
"I was a little bit insecure," she said. "I thought I had kind of sneaked into the program anyways, so I was a little bit worried on whether he (Sheffield) would want to keep me."
Her first face-to-face visit with Sheffield didn't make her feel any better.
"He really intimidated me the first time," she admitted. "He's just very direct and curt — at least before you know where his intentions lie and things like that.
"But coming from a place (North Carolina) where most people are very pleasant and welcoming and friendly, it was very new to be around that kind of attitude."
Both sides held true to their commitment. And both prospered once they built a bond.
"I really had a rough preseason as far as how I was performing (as a freshman)," she remembered. "But I found it easy to buy into the values he (Sheffield) wanted our team to have."
She also recalled warming to the Sheffield approach. "I really agreed with his coaching philosophy," she said, "so that's when I knew he was going to be a great coach for me."
There was an early turning point that first season for both coach and player.
"At first, I didn't feel any pressure even though I was playing as a freshman," Nelson said. "I knew that not much was expected of me.
"But then, I started to do a little bit better and I started to realize the team kind of needed me more than at the beginning (of the season). And that's when things started to get tough.
"But he (Sheffield) was always there telling me, 'Stick to what you know. Keep working on your skills and you'll be what the team needs. You'll be a great teammate.'"
Because she's so good in the locker room — and on the court — she was a natural team leader.
"It used to very easy," Nelson said of her leadership responsibilities as a captain. "I used to not think so much about it. But there are only a few upperclassmen on the team, so I think more about it.
"Not everyone is going to have their best game every night. So how are we going to balance that out? We really battled and found that chemistry and that flow on the court."
"It's not that it's so much harder. But I do have to think more about what the team needs — I'm not just doing what I'm used to doing."
And that's because it matters to Nelson.
"It is important," she echoed, "to be a good leader."
In this vein, she doesn't take anything for granted, particularly in her role.
"It's very special," she said. "There's a lot of stuff that goes into being a captain. We have a lot of meetings and stuff. But it's cool to know my teammates look up to me and the other captains."
Early on, the younger players need some direction. While the Badgers were encountering some expected growing pains, there were more questions than answers.
"We struggled together at the beginning of the season trying to find our identity," Nelson said. "How were we going to get that consistency? How would we make up for each other?
"Not everyone is going to have their best game every night. So how are we going to balance that out? We really battled and found that chemistry and that flow on the court."
Still, there was a stretch where the UW's resilience was tested after losing three straight on the road to Arkansas, Penn State and Ohio State.
"We learned a lot from each (loss)," said Nelson, citing how they were hardened by five-set losses to the Razorbacks, the Buckeyes and later to Minnesota on the home floor in mid-October.
"By the time we got to Illinois (Nov. 18) and played another five-set match, it was important to get that win (one of now 12 straight) because we hadn't before.
"Having the experience in those losses made us gritty and focused on that fifth-set game (that the Badgers won in Champaign) which we could very well see in the tournament. All those games were preparation. We knew it was a learning process and those losses weren't the end of the world.
"We were going to take what we could from them and learn from them and become better. Everyone stayed focused on the big picture."
And now that picture has crystallized with a No. 6 seed in the tournament.
"Once you get to the postseason," she said, "it's just the best feeling."
And there's no better feeling, she added, than playing at home.
"I love that we can bring the thrill of the tournament to the Field House and to Badger fans," Nelson said. "They really deserve it and it's great to have them be a part of our journey."
Nelson, the analyst, would appreciate that sentiment as much as Nelson, the catalyst.
