Tribune Volleyball Player of the Year: OFF THE COURT WITH MARY KURISCH

By Kirk Bey | kbey@lacrossetribune.com

NICKNAME: “Mare” or “Mare-Bear”

PET: Her cat, Cookie, a domestic long-hair

HER REFRIGERATOR MUST BE STOCKED WITH ... : White 2 percent milk FAVORITE RESTAURANT: Romano’s Macaroni Grill

THE PERSON SHE WOULD MOST LIKE TO HAVE DINNER WITH IS ... : Olympic gold-medal winning swimmer Michael Phelps

FAVORITE MOVIES: “Bourne Identity,” “Bourne Supremacy” and “Bourne Ultimatum.”

FAVORITE TV SHOWS: “Friends” and “The Office.”

DREAM CAR: A lime green Jeep Wrangler

WHAT SHE DRIVES: A 2001 Dodge Sebring

DREAM JOB: Playing professional volleyball on the AVP tour

DREAM CONCERT: Taylor Swift and Faith Hill

WHAT’S ON HER MP3 PLAYER: Primarily country music artists such as Swift, Hill and Tim McGraw

DREAM SPORTING EVENT: The Summer Olympics

FAVORITE OPPOSING TEAM: Onalaska Luther

FAVORITE TEAMMATES: Former teammate Allison Gilbert and senior libero Brittany Kostecki

MOST MEMORABLE HIGH SCHOOL MATCH: West Salem’s five-game, come-from-behind victory over Black River Falls in a 2007 WIAA Division 2 regional final

IF SHE COULD PLAY ANOTHER SPORT, IT WOULD BE: Either softball or tennis

IN HER FREE TIME SHE LIKES TO ... : Scrapbook, make locker signs for her volleyball teammates, attend West Salem sporting events

SOMETHING SHE HAS TO DO BEFORE SHE TURNS 30 IS: Play sand volleyball

IF SHE HAD A MILLION DOLLARS, SHE WOULD: By a new house for her parents, donate some to charity, put some in the bank, buy a new car

IN 10 YEARS SHE SEES HERSELF: Being a coach and a teacher

FAVORITE WEB SITE: Facebook.com. It allows her to keep in touch with Gilbert, who now is a freshman for NCAA Division I Western Illinois.

HOW SHE WANTS TO BE REMEMBERED: As a hard worker, good athlete, nice person and someone who is easy to talk to