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Junior forward Chelsea Shine (Wayne, Pa.) recently checked in with VirginiaSports.com from Greensboro, N.C., where the team has arrived for the 2011 ACC Tournament. Eighth-seeded Virginia faces ninth-seeded Wake Forest in the first round on Thursday (March 3) at 3 p.m. The contest is televised on Comcast SportsNet in the Charlottesville area.

Question: This is the third ACC Tournament of your career and the first as an upperclassmen. What experience do you draw from as your team is preparing for the conference championship?
Shine
: This being my third year, it’s nice to be able to have experiences to look back on and build off of. I know my freshman and sophomore years, we had a little bit of a higher seed so it’s a little bit different this year. At the same time, every team comes down here to win, with the same mentality regardless of where you’re seeded. I also believe that when it comes to ACCs, it’s anybody’s game on any given night. Every night here you have to go out and play so hard because anyone is capable in this tournament.

Question: You defeated Wake Forest handily at John Paul Jones Arena earlier this season. What are you expecting from the rematch?
Shine
: Because of how the game went the last time we played them, it makes it a little bit harder for us because it’s a hard thing to get that out of your mind and know that they are a much better team than that. It’s important that all of us do not take them for granted by any means. It’s important that we all bring that mentality and understand that on the court on any night anybody can play in any way. We need to be ready to defend them.

Question: Did the 73-71 overtime victory at Virginia Tech on Sunday give the team momentum heading to Greensboro?
Shine
: It was a really good game – we thought maybe we could of won in regulation – but regardless it was good to get a win coming into this tournament. It gives us some more overtime experience. I was really proud of how everyone really persevered right up until the end.

Question: Talk about your trip to Vietnam this upcoming summer.
Shine
: It’s a Coach for College trip – a woman from Duke a few years ago was the founder of it. Sixteen student-athletes go during a three-week session and work with Vietnamese kids, coaching them in different sports. You teach them basic principles in volleyball, basketball, soccer and tennis. Two American student-athletes are partnered with two Vietnamese coaches and a translator so we all work together to form lesson plans. It’s to promote higher education and to try and show these kids how to have success in the classroom and on the playing field.

Question: How did you hear of this opportunity?
Shine
: I had heard about it through an email from (Life Skills Director) Phil Gates. There are a few other UVa student-athletes going, I know Claire Crippen (women’s swimming) is going. When opportunities like this come up I sometimes assume I can’t do it because of my schedule, but Miss Fitz (academic coordinator Natalie Fitzgerald) worked it out and I’m very excited.

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