|
On Sunday, Nov. 25 my teammates and I arrived early to set up the chairs around the big screen for the NCAA Tournament announcement show. Right around 8 p.m. our head coach, Barry Goldberg, and administrators gathered to hear our destination. Throughout the entire show my heart was beating through my chest. Each time a name filled one of the brackets next to its school logo, I scanned them feverishly searching for ours. After each commercial break we would brace for the next set of names. Ours did not show up almost until the end of the selection show. We took notice of our match-up and the location, which was much closer to home than in previous years. My teammate, Logan Striebel, and I stood up, screamed and high fived each other to celebrate our good draw. The next day at practice we began to discuss offensive and defensive plans of attack. During practice we played back row three's and a lot of six on six to uphold a competitive and fun atmosphere. At the end of practice, Coach Goldberg gave us an itinerary and told us we would leave Wednesday afternoon when classes ended. On Wednesday, Nov. 28 after early morning practice and lifting everyone headed to their classes, jittering with excitement. That evening we left American at 5 p.m. and arrived at our hotel in Durham around 10 p.m. In each of our rooms that night we all fought to get to sleep, thinking about the days to come. The next morning we ate breakfast together and had an early evening practice. But before we headed to the gym, we went to eat lunch at Logan's house in Raleigh, N.C. Her family welcomed us into their home for the second time this season and provided a delicious and healthy meal. After we all had our fill, we sat around and talked about all the fun times we have had over the season. Old jokes resurfaced and hilarious incidents were reenacted. Then we all thanked the Striebel's, took a few pictures and left for practice.
After we got back to the hotel I had homework to do before going to bed. My assignment was to write a paper applying class concepts to a book that I read that had an adolescent target audience. Once I completed my paper I e-mailed it to my professor before class time and she responded with a "thank you" and "GO AU"! A good night's rest was well deserved after this long day and also in order to prepare for the peak of the trip the next day. To our surprise, Friday finally rolled around. Lunch and pre-game practice flew by and before we knew it we were watching the Liberty and Cal match - the contest before American's. Elizabeth Maloney, our only senior from last year's team, drove all the way down to Durham from Toronto, Canada! This was one of the best surprises of the day! Finally, the moment we had been preparing for since last spring, was here. All of our hard work, sweat, pain and hours spent on the court, track and in the weight room were coming into play. During the announcement of each team's players, I observed all of my loved ones in the crowd; my father, mother and younger (but taller) brother were beaming with pride and excitement as they cheered for our team. Once I made this observation, the crowd was pretty much out of my mind. All of the noise, distractions and jeers from the crowd were easily zoned out as my focus narrowed to my team and our side of the court.
|
