On how her Gut Check tryout came about:
"I honestly have no idea how it came about. I just know that I was told right before my birthday that I was going to be featured on Gut Check. I was at OVW when I got the call, so there it was. I definitely upped my game and trained harder at practice. I was going to hit the gym harder and study tapes and just do as much as I could to prepare myself. That way I would be ready for anything because I didn't know what I was in for or who I would be in the ring with - I didn't know anything. I was just as surprised as everybody else was when they found out."
On working with Tara:
"The opportunity to work with her - I know people in the past have asked me what would be my dream opponent, and ironically it's her because she's actually the first female I ever saw on television. Growing up, I wanted to be just like her. She's one of my favorite wrestlers, so to actually get to wrestle her was a huge deal for me because I always thought I would be able to learn a lot from her. I was excited for the opportunity and nervous at the same time."
On the pressure of performing on national television:
"Right before I went out through the curtain, I just said to myself, 'It's do or die, this is what you've worked for.' If you go out there and basically don't do well, then you let everybody who said you couldn't make it win. And I'm not here to let them win, I'm here to win. If I didn't try my best out there that would have been a disgrace to me and everything that I stand for. So, yes I was nervous but that did not get in my way. I was more exhilarated at the fact that I got to showcase at least a little bit of what I got on national television. Because I earned it, no matter what anyone else says."
On the atmosphere in the Knockouts locker room:
"It was like a second home, it really was. I feel really privileged because I know that's not everyone's experience when they go to major companies like TNA, WWE and Ring of Honor. That was really surprising to me because I'm a new person coming in. You know, it's threatening to some people and I completely understand that because there are only so many people you can have on a roster. Everybody has their own opinion on who should and shouldn't be on the roster. I just went in hoping for the best but preparing for the worst, and honestly it was better than anything I could have ever expected. I was very happy and it really put me at ease. I felt confident and excited."
On her performance in the Gut Check match:
"I'm happy with it. I'm disappointed that I didn't win, but I'm working in the ring with somebody who has triple the amount of experience that I have. Just being in the ring with her, she passed on some of that to me which was a show of respect, in my opinion. I really respect her and I think I earned a little bit of her respect too. I know a lot of people don't exactly look on me in high regard because I am the rookie. But in my opinion, not everybody starts off in ten-star matches. Everybody has to start somewhere, everybody starts off green. You don't just come out of the womb and expect to be the Ric Flairs of pro wrestling or the most technical wrestler. You have to learn from the best too. So, I think I did my best and I'm confident with my match."
On her upcoming face-to-face evaluation with the judges:
"I'm looking forward to it. I'm always ready for a challenge, and I'll take any of them on. Whether they say yes, which I'm hoping, or if they say no, which I'm dreading - either way I was on national television and I got to showcase some of what I can do. Nobody's going to be able to take that away from me so if they say no, I still made it. And if I have to do it all over again and it takes me another six years, I will because I know I did it the right way through hard work, dedication and saying 'yes I can' instead of 'no I can't.' TNA has been looking at me since 2008 and it's now 2012 when I just got my first opportunity. But no matter what was said or done, I didn't give up. If they say no to me, then I'm going to say no to them. You know, if you're going to tell me no after everything that I've worked for, then I'm going to come back and keep coming back until you can no longer say no. That's my strategy and I think it's a really good one. Eventually you're going to see that some people are not going to take no for an answer and they'll keep doing the things you ask them to do until you run out of things to say and you just need to give them a contract."
