"Are you Jean?," she asked. "Follow me,"

And just like that, things went from chaotic to pleasant. I was immediately whisked up to the press box, given a great seat, and my credentials were hand-delivered.

Life was good. MVC's Erica Stelling had seized control, and ever since, has made life very comfortable for myself, and everyone else in the media as well. .

Make no doubt, as in most tournaments, there are lots of volunteers inside the stadium that provide a lot of help, and deserve a lot of praise. During this tournament, it's been the staff of Missouri State that has stepped up and done a fantastic job. However, the success of this tournament starts and ends with Stelling, who has done everything from taking care of the media, to moderating post-game press conferences, and even handling a furious Gene Stephenson after a Shocker loss in the first round. Imagine a ticked-off Bobby Knight, his large frame towering over all who walk by, being handled with ease by someone a foot shorter and a third of his size. That's as good an analogy as to what we saw on Wednesday night.

When you travel to a lot of sporting events, media days or postseason tournaments, you tend to notice the different styles of hospitality from the tournament directors, or school SIDs. Some are friendly, inviting people that really make you feel welcome. Some, though, are so tense that they can't crack a smile the entire time. Some completely ignore every writer there, making us fend for ourselves at times as they scurry down corridors, frantic over the tiniest details.

However, in a stadium that's named for a legend in the hotel business, it's Stelling, the MVC's Director of Communications, who sets the gold standard for media hospitality.

This entire week, she has never forgotten a face, or a name. She won't ignore them either, never missing an oppotunity to get feedback. While some administrators never even stop to say hi, Stelling remembers who you are, where you're from, and then delivers introductions to other MVC coaches and personnel. It's this simple kindness, combined with a quiet confidence, that has stood out all week.

Everyone here has received the red carpet treatment, and despite all the hard work and long hours that go into directing a tournament, the 29-year old Stelling has made it look easy.

With that in mind, we felt that Stelling deserved some well-earned praise. We also knew that our tournament coverage wouldn't be complete without getting her thoughts on the tournament. And, being as gracious as ever, Stelling took the time to share them with us. Here now is a partial transcript of that conversation...

JN: What's your overall thoughts right now on the tournament?

ES: Right now? Well, right now, I'm happy that we're still on schedule! Rain is definitely your biggest enemy, and if you get behind early, it can be a disaster for the rest of a tournament. So, I hope and pray that we can get these three games in today (NOTE: At the time of this interview, rain was headed our way, and Springfield was under a Flash Flood Warning). So from that persepective, so far we're doing good. I definitely think our best competition is still here; we still have our top seeds playing. So, that means we're still going to have some great competition ahead of us. I think the one disappointing thing is that we haven't had a lot of fans here, especially from the Missouri State side. But Wichita has brought a good group of fans, and Evansville...they have a group of 40-50 people, but they're loud.

JN: Following with what (Bradley Coach) Dewey Kalmer said, are you in favor of hosting this tournament at a neutral site in the near future?

ES: I really don't have a preference. I think, from a fan perspective, a campus site is your best bet. I think the home field advantage is different in baseball than it is in other sports, like basketball. But there is a slight advantage to playing on your home field, so I understand the feelings about playing at a neutral site. We just need a good, quality field and a stadium that can handle hosting this tournament, and that's why, for now, we can only play it in Springfield, Wichita, or a neutral site. Now, that's not to say that in our league cities...Evansville has a minor league park nearby, and Southern Illinois...down in Marion, which is about ten minutes away from Carbondale, they're building a new Independent League ballpark, so we might could be able to hold one in those ballparks and have the school host it.

JN: The MVC has been represented in the College World Series 15 times, but as this tournament has progressed, the national media coverage doesn't seem to be there (except for CSTV.com). What will it take to get more national attention to a conference that really deserves it?

ES: Well, just like basketball, it will take two teams making "Sweet 16" to get some attention. We need to be successful on the field; winning regionals, getting to supers, getting back to Omaha. I think, location-wise, for a non-football conference, we're huge in baseball. We're very historically good in baseball. We have a minimum of two teams in every year, and getting a third team in would help. That does require teams like Evansville to win more games down the stretch, and it also takes beating the top teams in the country. When you go play at Oregon State for a three-game series, you've got to win one of those games. You can't lose 1-0 every time, you've got to get a win and get over that little hump. It's what we preach to our basketball programs...you've got to play a good, tough non-conference schedule and you've got to win those games and boost your RPI.

JN: True, even with these six tournament teams going 9-7 against the Big 12 this year

ES: Yes, and that means we're there. That's impressive. I think, as well, we need to invest in some television exposure. We're doing it with streaming video online, but that would give the media who are interested a chance to watch us more.

JN: How do you feel about the rule of the host school getting an automatic bid into the tournament?

ES: I've sat in a lot of coaches' meetings, and from a coach's perspective, the regular season means something. It means something when you go 20-4 in the regular sesason (Wichita St.) or 19-5 (Creighton). Missouri State, though, bid for this tournament. We didn't just give it to them, and we didn't expect them to finish dead last. But these coaches know the rules all along. They know what they have to do to get into the tournament. I don't think it's that bad a rule, and for now, we don't have a neutral site to play it right now. What would happen if we played the tournament at Wichita without Wichita State? Not many fans would show up. The bottom line is that we need the fans.

JN: One last question...so far, you've made running this tournament look easy. What's the secret to your success?

ES: (laughing), Wow! I don't know. Obviously, Missouri State being the hosts, and having a stadium like this, I give them a lot of props. That's also something about a neutral site. If we played this at a neutral site, we'd have to be the host and we'd have to handle every aspect, including finding volunteers. We have 75 volunteers that help us each year at our men's basketball tournament. Missouri State, co-hosting this, provides a lot of services. But, it is a Missouri Valley tournament, so they have to follow our rules, which can be difficult because each school has a certain way of doing things, and then we come in and change everything up. But, a key reason for this success is that it's baseball, and it's a lot more relaxed atmosphere. All of the coaches, including Gene, are good guys, and they just want to play. It's a whole different type of atmosphere in my mind. Basketball is a little more hectic, a little more fast-paced. I used to be a little more uptight, but this is my fourth year, and I have a good working relationship with the coaches and SIDs, and being at Missouri State...they've hosted a lot of tournaments, so we've worked with them a lot. But, you do what you can, and if something doesn't work, you move on and work around it.