University of Georgia Athletics
Quick Chat: Sophie Fischer
September 30, 2022 | Volleyball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
The last time the Georgia volleyball team took the court, Wednesday night against South Carolina, junior Sophie Fischer put on a show. The 6-foot-5 middle blocker set a program single-match record with 15 blocks, and she added 10 kills for her first career double-double, leading the way as the Bulldogs beat the Gamecocks in five sets.
Fisher, from Fort Mill, S.C., started her career at Kentucky. She was a reserve on the Wildcats' national championship team in 2020, and now the two-time South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year is trying to help Georgia ascend to the top of the SEC. The Bulldogs host Texas A&M at Stegeman Coliseum this weekend.
During a recent Quick Chat, Fischer talked about being funny, her start in volleyball, adjusting to a new school and program, and much more. Here's some of what she had to say:
Frierson: I just interviewed your teammate Tori Harper, and when I asked her who the funniest person on the team is, she didn't hesitate before saying your name. How do you feel about that?
Fischer: [Laughs] Oh, my gosh. I feel good about that, honored that people think I'm funny.
Frierson: Are you trying to be funny?
Fischer: No, I don't really try to be funny. I just say some stuff and they laugh. I think it's true, I can say it's true — I think I'm pretty funny.
I think Kaitlin Fournier is definitely funny. She's really funny. Everyone's pretty funny — there's nobody on the team that isn't funny — but Kaitlin is the one that always makes me laugh the hardest. And Clara (Brower) has some jokes here and there; they're really, really dry humor jokes, but they're good.
Frierson: What is the biggest difference between going off to college from high school and transferring to a new school after a couple of years?
Fischer: I think from high school to college, it's a totally different everything. High school volleyball is more relaxed and you're just playing for your high school team. It's still competitive but you don't do it every single day for the whole year. College volleyball is much more demanding.
Transferring, it was more that I had a different perspective. I'd been to one place and seen how one place worked, and I wanted a brand-new start, so I came here with an open mind.
Frierson: How did you get started in volleyball? Did you play a bunch of different sports when you were younger? I'm assuming basketball coaches were always chasing after you.
Fischer: I played a bunch of sports: swimming, tennis, basketball, soccer and volleyball. I was pretty good at soccer but I just played it when I was little. Basketball, I was so bad at it. I didn't know you could travel and I'm pretty sure I couldn't shoot the ball. I was pretty bad but my mom played basketball in college and she encouraged me to try it.
I played tennis and I loved tennis, and you can be 6-4 and play tennis, but then I tried volleyball. I did one volleyball practice and was like, "This is too girlie." I have three brothers and we'd play two-hand touch football and things that were super competitive, and I'd be like, "Volleyball's too girlie." But then mom made me go to practice one day and I was crying the whole way there — and then I had so much fun. And ever since then I started playing, and I haven't stopped.
Frierson: Being in an athletic family, were you all competitive with everything?
Fischer: My whole family's pretty competitive. I lived in Charlotte, N.C., for a while, and there's that big divide between Duke and North Carolina, and I actually committed to North Carolina when I was in eighth grade or freshman year, so I loved UNC. But my whole family was big Blue Devil fans, so we'd be watching a game and I'm sitting in the corner while my whole family is cheering on the Blue Devils. There was a bunch of smack talk.
My younger brother, Reece, he's one of the reasons why I'm so competitive today. If he ever reads this ... we used to play H-O-R-S-E and P-I-G in basketball and we would always end up fighting. Every single time. It just shouldn't have been allowed for us to play basketball together. It was just so, I will not lose to my little brother. And he was so, I'm not going to lose to a girl.
It would be so much smack talk, and he's definitely one of the reasons I'm so competitive. He definitely fueled that fire in me.
Frierson: What's something you could eat every day and never get tired of it?
Fischer: Anything with rice. I like sushi, hibachi, Chipotle rice bowls. Rice is pretty easy to put with everything.
Frierson: How are you in the kitchen?
Fischer: [Laughs] I think I'm a good cook, but I don't cook that much.
Frierson: If you were inviting three teammates over, what would you make them?
Fischer: I'd probably make a Cajun chicken pasta. That's one of my favorite foods, pasta, but rice tops it.
Frierson: When you think of home, what comes to mind?
Fischer: I think big. I have four siblings and we have two big dogs, a big backyard, and obviously my parents. It's never boring at home. My siblings are like my best friends, so it's always busy, always something to do. It's always a good time.
(This Q&A was lightly edited for length and clarity.)
Assistant Sports Communications Director 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.
