Born and raised in uptown New Orleans, senior setter Lizzy Fitzgerald has become one of the main ingredients for success here in Madison for the Wisconsin volleyball program.
As a child, Fitzgerald did not have to look too far outside of her family to find successful athlete role models.
Her father Bill played basketball during his college years at Tulane University, her older sister Meg played volleyball at the University of Florida, her older brother Edmond played basketball at Mississippi for two years and her youngest brother Robert is currently playing baseball at Tennessee.
Fitzgerald followed in the footsteps of her sister from early on. She recalls acting as a ball girl for her sister's volleyball teams since she was young. In fifth grade she started playing competively herself.
As a freshman in high school, Fitzgerald was put on the junior varsity team, and it wasn't until her sophomore year that she was able to contribute to the varsity squad.
Fitzgerald was a force from day one on the varsity as she would start the whole year as a sophomore and lead her to team to a Louisiana State Championship. Not only did she lead the team to victory, Fitzgerald was given the highly coveted award of 1995 Most Valuable Player of the Tournament award.
As amazing as those feats were for a sophomore, Fitzgerald was able to achieve these same honors again in her junior and senior years. Those would not be her only awards as she also received the 1996 and 1997 Louisiana State Player of the Year and Gatorade State Player of the Year awards.
Along with her school-sponsored sports of volleyball, track and soccer, Fitzgerald also played for a club volleyball program, the Piranha Volleyball Club, to gain more competitive experience and exposure from college coaches from around the country.
Playing club ball did end up paying off for Fitzgerald as she was recruited intensely by many college teams.
In the end, it would be a choice between the University of Florida, UCLA, UW-Madison, and the University of Colorado-Boulder.
Wisconsin was the winner of the competition for Fitzgerald's services, but what was it about Wisconsin that drew her in?
'Wisconsin was going to give me the best opportunity playing wise,' Fitzgerald said. 'At each of the other schools I was considering I would have to wait at least two years before I would be playing. Wisconsin was a growing program and was on the move upward.'
Like most freshmen, Fitzgerald was a little nervous to begin her career at Madison.
'I was definitely scared when I came here and I only knew three or four people,' Fitzgerald said. 'I came in here really unsure of what to expect. I was also a little overwhelmed by the level of volleyball for pretty much my entire first year.'
As a freshman Fitzgerald lived in Bradley Hall on the Lakeshore. She remembers one of the hardest classes she has ever taken at Madison was during that first year, Math 114.
Even with the ups and downs of the first year, Fitzgerald grew up to be a confident player and saw extended playing time her sophomore year.
By the time Fitzgerald was a junior she had grown comfortable in the role of a team leader and guided the Badgers to a Big Ten Championship and a second-place finish in the 2000 NCAA Championship Tournament. Her biggest individual honor was being named second team All-American.
Much of Fitzgerald's success was made possible by her family's constant support. Fitzgerald describes her family as extremely close.
Her family has watched each other play various sports for many years and remains in close contact.
In addition to keeping in touch, Fitzgerald's parents try to come to Wisconsin to watch her play at least two or three times a year.
Fitzgerald will graduate this spring with a degree in communications, but is still keeping volleyball in her dreams.
'This past summer I trained with the A-2 U.S. Nationals Team program and I am hoping to continue on in playing volleyball,' Fitzgerald said. 'I will have to wait and see what my options are, but I would like to continue playing for as long as I can.'
