University of Georgia Athletics
A Quick Chat With ... Meghan Donovan
August 31, 2016 | Volleyball
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Just three games into her Georgia volleyball career, Meghan Donovan is already making an impact. The freshman from St. Louis, Mo., was a big part of the Bulldogs' three straight wins last weekend in the season-opening Benson Hospitality Invitational.
The 6-foot-2 Donovan is a setter -- she set the Missouri state high school assist record with 3,468 during her prep career at Villa Duchesne High School -- and by the time Georgia closed out San Francisco in four games last Saturday night, Donovan had 106 of the Bulldogs' 130 assists during the three-game event.
During a quick chat following practice Tuesday, Donovan, the 2015 Gatorade State Volleyball Player of the Year for Missouri, talked about adjusting to college life on and off the court, watching volleyball during the Olympics and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: Did you get a chance to watch much of the Olympic volleyball?
Donovan: It was cool. It was during preseason so we'd have morning practice and afternoon practice, then we'd stay for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and we'd watch it during our breaks. It was really fun to watch it as a team, together.
Frierson: When you watched, it was the Olympics so these were the best players in the world, were you studying the games for little tips and insights or were you just watching as a fan?
Donovan: They're the best of the best so it was fun to see, a setter watching another setter. Watching how she sets the ball, how she plays defense and stuff like that. It was really cool.
Frierson: How old were you when you first started playing and got serious about it?
Donovan: I was 9 when I first started playing club and then I switched to setting at 14, which is pretty late to start switching a position, freshman year. So I've only been in my position for about four years, but it was my freshman year of high school that I started getting really serious.
Frierson: What do you do during the quiet times, away from the game and away from school?
Donovan: There's not much of it, but I like to go to the pool, I hang out with a lot of gymnasts and golfers. It's so fun to be a part of Georgia sports because you hang out with all the sports players when they're off and we're off. It's a lot of fun.
Frierson: You've only been doing school and volleyball at Georgia for a short time, but is there anything you've already learned about the challenges of being a collegiate athlete?
Donovan: I think it's a lot harder. When I played club in high school, so I was doing school and volleyball, but now it's dedicating your whole life to volleyball and school work. It's a little bit of an adjustment at first, but you get used to it. The coaches, the tutors, the teammates, they all help, which is nice.
Frierson: What's the most creative thing you do? Or what's something creative that you'd like to be able to do?
Donovan: I like drawing and I like designing, like I designed my room and decorated that. I like interior design.
Frierson: Did you do anything special in the room?
Donovan: We did a group painting, we painted a bulldog with a volleyball, all the whole team, and I have that hanging up in my dorm. I did a picture collage -- stuff like that.
Frierson: What's something you've discovered or learned in 2016 that you're really happy you did? It can be a book you read for the first time, a musician, a sandwich you now love -- anything.
Donovan: I don't know. There's a lot of good food places here in Athens. ... I love The Taco Stand, I love Starbucks.
Frierson: You just won a place in my heart because The Taco Stand has been my favorite restaurant in the world since I was about 12 years old. I even worked at the one downtown in my early 20s, and I still love it.
Donovan: You're kidding! That's the only one I go to. It's so good. I love their quest.
Frierson: If you could play any other sport for Georgia what would it be?
Donovan: I'd say swimming or tennis. I used to do swimming and tennis and I loved both of them. I still play tennis, I have a twin brother and I still play with him a lot, and I did the swim team.
Donovan and the 3-0 volleyball team are in Boston this weekend for the Beantown Challenge. They play Boston College on Friday.
John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files. He's also on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
