by Gina Scarpa

If the move had worked, it would have gone done as one of the boldest in Survivor history. Hayden convinced Ciera to force a tie at tribal council, which left her, Katie, and Tyson to draw rocks. Whoever drew the white rock was out and while the plan was to get rid of Tyson, it was Katie who ended up on Redemption Island. In the next challenge, she lost to Laura and Tina, her mother. We chatted with her before the finale in an exclusive interview about her Survivor experience and whether or not the returning players should go to the end together.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: The new players came into the game with some knowledge, given their loved one is a returning player. Did you feel a little extra pressure, though, since your mom is a former winner?
A. Katie: That's a really good question... maybe. I don't know if I felt more pressure because she had won. The second go-around, she was voted out because she was a previous winner. My mom was worried about getting voted out this time because she's the oldest. That's why we were worried to be on separate tribes but excited to play our own game.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How did she help prepare you for the game?
A. Katie: She said, "This is going to be the hardest thing you do ever. You're paranoid 24/7!" I was going in, expecting the very worst. I expected it to be difficult and it was hard. The hardest part was starving because you don't have any energy. You watch it at home and it looks like we're not trying!

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Caleb made a big move early on, voting Brad out of the game. Looking back on it, do you still think that was the right move at the right time?
A. Katie: Absolutely, and it's funny. It's nothing against Brad because I think all of us can attest to the fact that he's a great guy. Our team morale was in the dumps and we kept losing. It was a great move for Caleb and that tribal council was so crazy for everybody! It was nice that we won the challenge after that. It was a camaraderie that we had been missing. I wouldn't have done anything differently!

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Does it make sense to you for Tyson, Monica, and Gervase to go to the end together? It seems like they'll split the jury.
A. Katie: I'll break it down for each person. It wouldn't have made sense for Monica to go with Hayden and Ciera, with Hayden being one of the most likeable and Ciera maybe having her mom come back. I think that was smart of Monica to stay with the guys. Tyson, I think, is playing a really great game. He and Gervase are an unbreakable force and it makes sense for them to go to the end together. Like Gervase said, you can't pay for that kind of loyalty.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: It looked like you didn't want your mom to go through the gate to move on at Redemption Island. What was really going through your mind?
A. Katie: With Redemption Island, when that second keyring fell to the ground and I accidentally pushed it, we could've been there that all afternoon. I was just so far behind and she basically asked permission to go through. I could see that internal battle within her, you know, "Do I see my daughter go home because of me?" I wouldn't have said, "No, stay right there! Let me win!" We said we'd try our hardest which is what we did.

The finale of Survivor: Blood Vs. Water airs tonight at 8pm ET on CBS.

(Image courtesy of CBS)

Follow Gina @ginascarpa