40 // VARSITY May 15, 2014
graduate within the five-year window.
"Coach has really instilled in them something very
special," Weaver-Klees said.
It certainly hasn't hurt that Weaver-Klees has
earned the player's trust.
"She's probably one of
the nicest people I've ever
met and she really takes
her job seriously," Kerdiles
said. "She's always on top
of you, which is a nice thing
to have.
"Some people might get
bugged by it. But I look at
it as a great thing because I
know that I have someone
in my corner. She just puts so much time and effort
into it. She was a huge help for me."
Weaver-Klees took over as the hockey advisor
with the arrival of this year's seniors. "A big part of
every student-athlete's life is to graduate and she
helps you get there," Mersch said.
It's not a surprise that the spring signing period
has been challenging to Weaver-Klees.
"The first step," she explained, "was saying to
them, 'Once you're ready to go, don't just drop off
the face of the earth and not finish your classes. Fin-
ish the semester in a positive way.
"'Let's have a plan in place for how you're going
to handle it from whenever
the season ends until the
end of the semester and
then beyond.'"
Mersch took it to heart
and took it a step further
by taking an extremely pro-
active stance. By doing so,
he has become a model for
other Badgers by repre-
senting the ideal decision-
making process.
After informing Weaver-Klees of the potential sce-
narios at the end of the UW's season, she asked him,
"How comfortable are you talking with your faculty
about what your plans are?"
Mersch followed through in a "very positively
forthright" manner, according to Weaver-Klees.
"Early in the second semester," he said, "I talked
"THE FIRST STEP," WEAVER-KLEES
EXPLAINED, "WAS SAYING TO THEM, 'ONCE
YOU'RE READY TO GO, DON'T JUST DROP
OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH AND NOT
FINISH YOUR CLASSES. FINISH THE
SEMESTER IN A POSITIVE WAY."
Before they headed off to pro contracts after
the season (from left) Jake McCabe, Michael
Mersch, Frankie Simonelli and Nic Kerdiles
met up with guidance counselor Lisa Vollmers
from their days with the U.S. National Team.
