THOSE GOOD OL' BAYLOR GAMES Two decades ago, no team gave the Aggies more fits on the field than Baylor By Rusty Burson

For many teen-age girls, the mere sight of blood is enough to make stomachs churn and heads turn. Beth Weynand, on the other hand, discovered rather quickly in life that she didn’t have an ounce of squeamish blood in her body.

A math and science whiz as a child, Weynand had often entertained the idea of a career in medicine. But just to make certain she had the stomach for the profession, a 14-year-old Weynand would occasionally spend her free time by observing open-heart surgeries.

Senior Beth Weynand was named the female Scholar Athlete of the Year for 2000-2001.

Not from afar. Not on TV, either. Up close in her scrubs. Looking over the shoulder of the surgeon.

Weynand never flinched. In fact, the entire process seemed rather intriguing and fascinating to her.

"My best friend growing up, her dad was a cardiothoracic surgeon," said Weynand, who is currently applying to various medical schools throughout Texas. "So he would always let me go watch surgeries. He influenced me in that way. I was pretty young, but we got to stand right there, almost on top of the patient and watched the whole thing.

"(The surgeon) was like, ‘OK, if you get a little lightheaded, make sure you go sit down somewhere so you don’t pass out. But I was all right. It was a really neat experience."

Weynand, who maintains a 4.0 grade point average in biomedical science, obviously has the mind and the stomach for a career in medicine. She may also have the heart to lead Texas A&M’s volleyball team to unprecedented heights in 2001.

At 5-foot-8, the senior defensive specialist/outside hitter is the shortest player on the A&M roster. But her presence in the lineup is big for the Aggies, who have set a goal of reaching the Final Four in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.

Her work ethic and toughness have made her one of A&M’s leaders. And the fifth-year senior has the composure and precision on the court of, well, a surgeon.

"She’s pretty remarkable in terms of her day-to-day work ethic," A&M head volleyball coach Laurie Corbelli said of Weynand. "I’ve been thinking a lot about team effort, and if the coaches weren’t in the gym and the team was asked to practice, who would really give 110 percent without coaches watching. I know Beth would every day, whether the coaches were here or not. That’s just the type of player you crave as a coach. She’s always been that way for this program. She’s made herself very necessary for this program."

It’s quite a testament to her toughness – both physically and mentally – that she is even still a member of the team. Weynand turned down several volleyball scholarships coming out of high school to be a walk-on at Texas A&M.

Of course, the National Merit Commended Scholar was on a full ride academically because of her outstanding test scores and GPA at Austin’s Stephen F. Austin High School. As such, it would have been fairly easy – and certainly understandable – for her to leave volleyball behind when the series of injuries began to hit.

After starting nine matches and playing in 30 as a freshman in 1997, Weynand dislocated her elbow just prior to the start of her sophomore season. She eventually returned later that year, but was hampered by the elbow problem throughout the season.

Weynand is an Aggie legacy, as her father, Mike, graduated from A&M in 1972.

Then, at the start of the 1999 season, she tore the ACL in her left knee, sidelining her for the entire season.

Weynand jokes that she has already received quite a medical education just dealing with her own ailments. But – knock on wood – the health problems seem to be behind her, and she says she is extremely happy she stuck it out.

"My junior year (1999) was really hard getting through it all, with rehabbing my knee and all," Weynand said. "At that time I was also trying to prepare for the MCAT to get into medical school, so with a really tough class load plus trying to figure out if I really wanted to go to medical school and take the MCAT, I was just a little high strung.

"I gave some thought to quitting, but there were three of us – A.D. (Achilefu), Robyn (Burkhardt) and I – who all tore our ACLs within a month of each other, so we were all in rehab together, pushing each other along. That made it easier to work through it and stay with it. There was a bunch of soccer girls in there too, so we all pushed together. Last year, I was able to play, but my knee was hassling me the whole year. But now I really feel good, finally getting over that, and it’s made it all worthwhile."

Weynand is certainly playing at the top of her game now that she is a fifth-year senior. She is quicker and more explosive than ever before, and her passing is nearly perfect.

Most of all, though, Weynand’s confidence on the court has come leaps and bounds since she first arrived at A&M. While she has always had goals of helping others heal, she used to do some pretty serious abuse to herself following mistakes.

"She has been the type of player in the past to really beat herself up when she’s made an error," Corbelli said. "Even physically hitting herself and bruising her leg. She would hit herself very hard. She would come in with bruises on her legs at times from a day of passing, from shanking her passes, the next day she would be black and blue.

"Her standards for herself are so high, and we don’t want to discourage that, but we want to teach the players who are that hard on themselves to learn to make that energy work for them. Beth has been amazing in that area. We’ve asked Beth many times to talk with freshmen about that. She’s overcome that, and we’ve seen amazing progress in her self-esteem and her self-confidence when she plays."

Primarily, Weynand now focuses only on hitting the books that hard. A four-time GTE/Texas A&M Outstanding Scholar Athlete, Weynand last year received the Bill Erwin Scholar-Athlete Award honoring the top female student-athlete at Texas A&M.

She has never made a B in any class at Texas A&M, although she admits to one B while attending summer school at Austin Community College. Of course, she quickly points out that the B is not on her A&M transcript.

But Weynand is much more than just a volleyball player and bookworm. She is a master at time management, also devoting time and effort to the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Aggie Buddies, Aggie Athletes Involved, Habitat for Humanity and Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority.

"I do better when I have a lot of stuff going on," Weynand said. "The times when volleyball is out, when we have a couple weeks off during finals and all I have to concentrate on is school, I lay on the couch and watch TV or watch movies. And I’m a big nap-taker. Give me a couch and some quiet, and I’ll be out. But right now, when I’m busy, busy, busy, I go home and I realize I only have a certain amount of time to study. So, I’ll do it. I’m a lot better with a lot of things going on.

"I am proud of my grades. I’ve worked pretty hard. School comes a lot easier for me than it does for some people, but I’ve still put in my fair share of time, paying my dues."

The balancing act she has pulled off during her collegiate career makes the idea of handling the rigors of medical school seem a little less daunting.

Of course, Weynand’s father, Mike, says he has never seen his daughter intimidated by anything – whether it’s competition, class or observing open-heart surgery.

"I don’t think anything intimidates her," said Mike Weynand, who graduated from A&M in 1972. "She’s very mature and self-confident. And when she makes up her mind that she wants to do something, nothing is going to stop her. I don’t think she will be phased by medical school. I have never seen her not do well at something she really put her mind to."

Her mind will turn completely to medicine following her graduation in December. Until then, Weynand says she has some unfinished business to take care of on the court.

Injuries prevented her from being a part of the Aggies’ 1999 run to the Elite Eight. But she says she is determined to help lead the Aggies to even greater heights this year.

"I grew up going to A&M football and baseball games, and I had pretty much always wanted to come to school here," said Weynand, whose younger sister, Erin, is a junior at A&M. "I remember experiencing all the traditions as a kid and just falling for A&M. It’s been a dream come true for me to play here, but I’m not through yet.

"I think we definitely have the talent to reach the Final Four. It’s just a matter of getting us all on the same page, working hard, day in and day out in practice."

Rest assured, if blood, sweat and tears – and particularly blood – is the recipe for success, the Aggies will rely heavily on Weynand. She’s never been afraid to shed it or be around it.