Wheaton (Massachusetts) basketball player Jennie Pleat describes the program's first NCAA tournament appearance in 13 years.

In the middle of all the Division I March Madness, I can't help but think back about this past season and our team's first appearance in the NCAA tournament in 13 years. That NEWMAC cup and a trip to the big dance was what everyone on our team wanted from day one of preseason in September. I know for myself and the other upperclassmen on the team, coming to Wheaton meant building the program ultimately to reach the conference championship by the time we graduated.

I think everyone in the program is still in awe over this season. The race for the NEWMAC cup was a battle as always. We played probably one of our best games all season in the first round against MIT where it seemed every Wheaton player was focused and in sync. The few superstitious of us found ourselves constantly knocking on wood, not washing "lucky" clothing and abiding by our normal routines that week of NEWMACs. The semifinal and championship games were close against two physical and experienced teams. However, we all knew that there was no way any of us were going to let the final buzzer sound without Wheaton on top. With the NEWMAC cup in our hands, we all knew that our hard work, time and effort got us to this point. It was a complete relief.

That night, we started a new tradition and slept on the gym floor we won on just hours before: a great way to end an unforgettable day. As promised, our senior captain, Becky, directed our next practice and the coaches jumped in the pond on campus. Celebrating was memorable and we still had a great opportunity ahead of us in the NCAA tournament. At the end of the week, we set off to face our regular season opponent, Tufts, at Mount Saint Mary in New York. The last time we played Tufts, we were down by four at halftime but struggled in the second half to lose by quite a bit. With the revenge game approaching, we felt like we knew their style and personnel better this time around to compete and possibly upset them.

We practiced on the Mount Saint Mary court Thursday night and then shot around on Friday as well. Everything was done so officially, as there were time constraints for practice and warm-ups before the game. The NCAA signs and the brand new basketballs we played with reminded my thrilled teammates and I that we were actually playing the NCAA tournament: this was no dream. The game was a battle to the end, and I am convinced that if we had a minute left on the clock we could have won. We battled back after being down about 14. e all wanted to win at least one game in the tournament, and we came so close.

Overall, the NCAA experience and winning NEWMACS combined for an unforgettable season and a raising of standards for our program. Now that we've gotten a taste of the NCAAs, you can be sure that we will be working hard to get there again next year. However, I will never forget this season and the sense of true togetherness I felt being on this team.

Kelly and Kristen Taylor fill us in on the first half of the women's lacrosse season.

Well, we're back from Oregon and let us tell you...what a trip!! From the moment we touched down in Portland, excitement and fun times accompanied our team. We spent the first night in Portland and visited the Nike campus the next day for a practice on their "Bo Derek" turf field, lunch at their cafeteria, and a wonderful tour of the whole campus.

We got to see the evolution of Nike explained through the different centers dedicated to famous Nike athletes and pioneers. The next day we had a morning practice/shake out in the University of Oregon football stadium. Wow, that place is incredible! The rain held out for us nearly the entire trip and we had a beautiful night ahead to play against the top-20 Oregon Ducks. We knew we would be challenged and the first half only justified that as the Ducks led us 8-7 going into halftime. A great team effort in the second half led to us slowly pulling away and leaving the state of Oregon with a 14-9 "W" on our schedule!

We returned safely back to Chapel Hill despite a car side swiping our coach bus and a mere three hour "nap" that night in our Portland hotel before leaving for the airport. The whole Oregon experience was incredible and brought our team even closer than we were before. We had so many great laughs, meals, and of course took lots of pictures!
The next couple of days of our spring break were spent recovering from jetlag and preparing at practice for our upcoming opponent, top-5 ranked University of Virginia. Let's just say, nothing seemed to go right that day, and UVA left us with a disheartening 16-5 loss to deal with.

The strength of the ACC left us with only six days to put the UVA loss behind us before we were up against the top-5 ranked and intense rival DUKE. Practice was intense, really intense. We pushed each other harder that we ever had before, ran harder, and played harder. We focused on the minute details of the game that we had subconsciously disregarded previously. We did all of this without being pulled apart as a team. In actuality, we were united through our frustration and determination to change.

A teammate left us a motivational note on our locker room stools that morning before the Duke game and in one of the paragraphs, she epitomized the closeness that exists between the 28 of us. She wrote, "We gravitate toward each other. We understand each other and despite our different sizes, shapes, and personalities, we fit together perfectly. Even when we are sick of each other, we still can't stand to be apart. We thrive off of good competition, we crave success..."

Nonetheless, we played like a team out on that field vs. Duke and it paid off. We beat the Blue Devils 16-14 and earned another point in the Carlyle Cup Challenge between Duke and Carolina. That game marked the halfway point of our regular season and what we consider the beginning of our "2nd season." A 16-14 win over a top notch opponent is a great way to begin a season but as we are always told to believe... "The best is yet to come."

Until Next Time, GO HEELS!

Jenna Stiegler shares some final thoughts following the Wheaton (Massachusetts) women's soccer team's spring trip to Portugal.

An incredible and amazing trip to Portugal....and we won all 3 games!

While in the Algarve region (the southern part of the country on the Atlantic Ocean), we stayed at the Hotel Tivoli Arade in the Portimao Marina; a beautiful hotel that is only four years old. We visited the towns of Albufeira, Alvor, Sagres (Cape St. Vincent), Lagos and of course, Portimao. The beach, Praia da Rocha, was walking distance from our hotel. On the main avenue across the beach, there were plenty of shops, bars, restaurants, hotels, casino, etc...On returning to Lisbon towards the end of our trip, we stopped in Evora.

Throughout the trip we came across castles, palaces, churches, ancient ruins, small, narrow streets and were really able to capture and take in the beauty of the country. The blend and combination of the culture, the soccer (futbol), the friendship, the beach, etc... made for a great trip.

We played in three games in towns located just outside of Lisbon: Odivelas, Almada and Loures. We were very welcomed by all three of our opponents. They were all excited to play against our team. We had custom pennants made before the trip and each one of our players exchanged our team's banners with opposing players before each game. Our players got to experience firsthand soccer as a way of life and not just a hobby or an inferior sport. All three clubs that we played against have FieldTurf fields. Previously, they were dirt fields.

Overall, the trip was a trip of a lifetime, and meant a lot to all the players especially for myself and the other seniors. We were able to play once more for our college as well as wear the Wheaton College jersey one last time.

When Brooke Johnson went down with an ACL injury on December 20, she was leading the Western Carolina women's basketball team with 11.9 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

Johnson attempted a comeback at the end of January, but reinjured the knee in practice and had surgery on February 22. Without its junior co-captain, Western Carolina was able to win a school-record 25 games and qualify for the Women's National Invitation Tournament.

Although it was difficult to watch her teammates out on the court, Johnson didn't miss any action this winter, even making it to Catamounts' final home game just one day after surgery.

The Double-A Zone had a chance to catch up with Brooke last week to discuss the injury, her rehab plans and what it was like to watch from the sidelines this season.

Meet Brooke Johnson

Ashley Miller and the Wheaton (Massachusetts) field hockey team recently returned from Argentina.

On Thursday of our trip down to Argentina, the team had the chance to experience a more authentic and traditional side of Argentina. We visited Estancia Santa Susana, which was a ranch outside of the city and we were able to see a gaucho show. Directly after the visit to the ranch, we headed off to our final game against the club team CUBA. Unfortunately we lost the game, but after the game we had dinner with the other team and as a gift our team gave our jerseys to the other team and some of us got them in return.

On our last free day of the trip, some of us decided to stay poolside while others decided to do some last minute shopping, but after all of that we had our Farewell Dinner as a team with the owner of the company as well as our tour manager.

As our team trip came to a close on Saturday, we decided that a great end to a great week would be to see the Under-21 U.S. National Team versus the Under-21 Argentina Team. It was an intense game and after the game the US. .team came over to us and we talked and took a couple of pictures before dispersing to the weekend market before our plane took off to head back to New York. All in all, the trip was amazing, the country was gorgeous, the field hockey was great, and I would recommend this trip to any college field hockey team.

Read the latest from Robin Mackin.

This was a very exciting week for my national team. Still in Australia, they competed in the International Challenge which hosted Japan, China and Australia's national teams. They played a total of 8 games over 5 days, and came out with a 5-3 record. After coming out of the round robin with a 4-3 record, they advanced to the gold medal game to face Japan.

After 7 innings of play the score was tied at 0-0. They ended up winning in the 8th inning by a score of 2-1. Although I could not be there to cheer them on in person, I was able to watch all of the games over the internet broadcast. If anyone is still interested, I believe the games are still posted and can be found on the www.softball.ca Web site. Next week, the team will be taking some down time in Australia to enjoy the beaches and warm weather.

From a personal standpoint, I also got to watch some fun and exciting games at Bulldog Diamond! Those were probably the hardest games to watch from the stands...I very badly wanted to be a part of the action.

As some of you know, I am also a huge hockey fan! On Wednesday I went to go and watch the Fresno Falcons play over at the Save Mart Center, and on Sunday a group of us drove down to San Jose to watch the San Jose Sharks play. Each time I watch it live, it reminds me of how bad I miss playing the sport.

Wednesday will be my last day in Fresno. I will be flying back to Toronto to visit with the family for a bit before I report to Nebraska to train.

SIUE's Amy Austin finished her playing career and now looks toward a career in the classroom.

Our hopes of making the conference tournament and continuing on with the season depended upon whether we won our last regular season game. Emotions were running high as we took the floor, but luckily it was in our favor that we had plenty of energy to last the entire 40 minutes and nothing less, as we sometimes tend to play. Not only was it the last game at home for me as a senior, but the rest of the team too, as the gym will be completely renovated to gear up for the move to Division I.

Good news...we won! It was a great way to end my career, but because we won we got the opportunity to advance to the conference tournament. Our entire team was ecstatic to continue playing and the possibility of winning the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Unfortunately, our first game against Northern Kentucky was exactly the way we've played all season.

We had a great practice and warm-up and it showed on the court. We were leading most of the game and playing great defense until around the 10-minute mark when we scored our last points of the game. We were shut down in every aspect of our offense and didn't score again. We had the game within our reach and couldn't finish. The same scenario seems to have been on repeat for many, many games. We seem to play for 25-30 minutes and have a breakdown, which is what happened.

It's been a busy couple of weeks since our loss, trying to transition into a prospective teacher! Between switching student teaching assignments, perfecting my resume, and filling out job applications, I'm sure I will be in full anticipation as to where I will be able to teach next school year. Of course I can't help but watch all the basketball either. It's March Madness!!

Brandeis fencer Eugene Vortsman blogged about his experience at the national championships this past weekend. The Judges tied for 17th place overall at the meet.

There are few words that could describe the emotions one feels when walking into the venue with NCAA banners hanging everywhere you look. This is the moment of recognition for all the work you've done during the year. Coming from Brandeis, a small Division III school in Waltham, Massachusetts, we have less to lose then the powerhouse schools. We are there to represent our school and ourselves as best we can while many of the other schools have the pressure of needing to win the championship.

Fencing at the national level is different from many other sports because of the vast amount of international fencers participating. Many of them are recruited here from world championships and national teams of foreign countries. This makes the competition even harder because most of us have not met them in competition on the national level before college. They also bring with them different fencing styles that most of us are not accustomed to. They also bring with them a vast amount of experience and skill from their international victories.

The competition is set up so that every participant competes against every other top fencer in the country. There are 24 qualifiers from all over the country representing four regions. There is no easy school. There is no easy bout. And finally, there is no break. The best analogy for the NCAA fencing competition is to compare it to a sprinting marathon. There is no time to recover from a bad bout or a devastating loss. You have five minutes to catch your breath, analyze your last bout, and prepare for the next one.

My goals were the same as those of everyone else. I wanted to win the whole thing. But more realistically, my desire was to get all-American. My teammate was honored with that title by fencing incredibly well and finishing the tournament in 7thplace. The top twelve are given that honor and unfortunately I finished 14th.

I started fencing when I was 14, which is very late compared to the rest of the participants in the national championships. "Three Musketeers" is the novel that sucked me into the world of fencing. I knew that I wanted to fence from the first parries. Nothing has gotten in my way, and now it serves as an outlet for all the stresses of my life. I put on that mask and everything else melts away, leaving only a goal to defeat my opponent.

Fencing is not the most popular sport and therefore has a generally small community. This size allows the fencers to be exposed to people from all over the country while travelling to national tournaments. For me, I fell in love with the sport when it allowed me to see my own potential to be a well-known name on a national level. As a kid, I played many various sports and the Olympians that we saw on television were similar to Gods.

When I started fencing in one of the national hubs for fencing in New York City, I met fencers and suddenly they were real. It was possible for me to see my own potential, and this fueled my fire. Fencing is a beautiful sport frequently compared to "physical chess" because you need to plan ahead and figure out your opponent while still being very physically active. Fencing is an individual sport that forces you to place the blame only on yourself for losing but also gives you the opportunity of taking all the credit for winning.

Wheaton (Massachusetts) field hockey player Ashley Miller discusses the team's trip to Argentina. The Lyons are presently 1-1 on their tour.

To start off our trip to Argentina, our team first arrived in Buenos Aires airport pretty early in the morning and from there we went straight to our hotel, getting into our rooms, eating a breakfast right away, and our tour manager, Suevea, greeted us for a tour of the city. Around the city, we were able to see the "pink house" where the Argentine president goes in daily to work. From the "pink house" we left to visit a mausoleum cemetery, which had beautifully and diversely architectured mausoleums where we saw the place Evita is buried. After resting for a while, we headed in to see a professional soccer game.

The soccer game was equivalent to a Red Sox game during playoffs. I have never seen such loyal fans and such an intense atmosphere. There were fireworks, drums, banners, not to mention a gong.

On Monday, we headed off to have a four hour clinic with a coach, Lalo, of the National Team of Argentina. Field hockey is the number one sport down here for women and it is completely different than in the States. People do not play that much with their schools, but enroll themselves in clubs in which they are members for life and play two seasons a year.

From the clinic, we headed over to a community center in Belgrano to work with children. It was a place that had opened up in order for younger children to have a recreational outlet to go to instead of resorting to the streets, as they said. It was a great experience and to interact with people other than within the tourist sector, not to the ability to connect with people in such a short amount of time despite a language barrier.

On Tuesday, our team got on the bus once again to head to practice, this time for only two hours; however, as soon as we got there, we met a member of the Argentine national team, Donna, along with her husband, who is the goalie for the men's national team. We learned so much from our two hours with one of the best players in the world.

Following our practice, we were anticipating our first game against CASI, a local club. Unfortunately we lost the match. It was a good game despite the loss and after the game we headed in to have dinner with the other team, which is custom for them and exchanged small gifts.

On Wednesday, our day mirrored Tuesday, in the morning we had a two hour practice, this time with our tour manager, Suevea, who aside from being our tour manager has been training for the Argentine national team, where four of her teammates from her club are on presently. It was a great practice that was completely different from how we usually practice. As on Tuesday, we got ready for our game at night. This time we played a club called GEBA. However, unlike Tuesday, we won this game 1-0, which was great for us to beat an Argentinian team. Afterwards, we exchanged gifts again and ate dinner with the other team.

Knox softball student-athlete Katie Schneider, who is also a member of the Division III Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, sent us one of her recent drawings. The picture is of Knox senior Josh Moten, who plays both basketball and tennis at the college.

Past drawings from Katie Schneider:

• Knox Wrestling

Western Carolina's Kristen Feemster shares her thoughts following Monday night's loss in the championship game of the Southern Conference tournament.

We didn't get back from our game against Chattanooga in Charleston until 2:30 a.m. Tuesday morning. I had just enough time to take a nap and wake up for my 9:30 class. Being a college athlete is fun but it has its hard times. We stayed on campus during spring break to prepare for the tournament. Every team we played wanted to win. Every game was a battle.

We played with so much heart in the championship game and lost. It hurts to think about how bad I know we all wanted to win, especially the seniors. As soon as the game ended, I had flashbacks of our wins against Louisville, Middle Tennessee and when we swept the teams at the tournament in Hawaii. It's hard to accept the fact that after all our hard work, our chances of getting a bid to the NCAA tournament are not very good.

Whether it's the WNIT or the NCAA, this team has been given an opportunity to continue doing what we love - play - and we're grateful. We were given two days off to recuperate physically and emotionally from the game Monday night. The love and support of our fans that made the trip to Charleston and the simple, yet kind, comments from those on campus have helped us realize that our hard work, effort and ability has not gone unnoticed. The loss to Chattanooga will not handicap us. It will only add fuel to the postseason fire!

Jenna Stiegler and the Wheaton women's soccer team are spending their spring break in Portugal.

What do you get when you put 23 soccer players, two coaches, six parents, one sibling, one athletic trainer and a tour guide together on a bus? A great trip through Portugal. So far our trip has been very eventful. We arrived in Lisbon at about six in the morning Portugal time on Friday, March 7th on three hours of sleep, at the most. Right after arriving, we met our tour guide and got a great tour of the city. Lisbon is a beautiful city full of statues of ancient kings and famous Portuguese icons, old buildings, enormous churches, and a lot of history.

The night we arrived (still on three hours of sleep) we went to the city of Odivelas to play their women's club team. After a formal international walk-out to the field and a 90 minute soccer game, we ended up with a 3-0 victory. It was very interesting to see the Portuguese style of play as well as the commitment of their players. Their field was located in their club house which consisted of a gym, another field, locker rooms, and a place to eat.

The next couple of days, the weekend of March 8th, were filled with sightseeing, shopping, and eating traditional Portuguese food. We visited the town of Sintra where we were able to walk through the Royal Palace of Sintra. There were also many little shops and cafes lining the narrow roads of the town. Our meals up to now have consisted of a buffet breakfast with bread, cheese, meat, cereal, coffee and much more. Lunch has been the main meal of the day which was usually broccoli, potatoes and different types of meat. Lunch also included a starter, soup or salad, and a delicious pastry.

Our second game on Sunday, March 9th was against Beiro Mar in the town of Almada. The final score was 2-1 Wheaton. Locals from the town gathered to watch our game and cheer on their home team. It was a new experience for most of us not to be able to communicate with the referees and it was hard not to question the calls they made, but it did us no good. Luckily our coach is from Portugal and has been the ultimate communicator for us.

Later that day, we did some more touring of the castle of Saint George. It was an ancient fortress that we were able to climb to the top of and get the best view of the city of Lisbon. After the tour we went to a professional European soccer game, the home team Benfica vs. Uniao de Leira which ended up in a 2-2 tie. The best part aside from the high level of soccer was the intensity of the fans. If we made any cheers for the visiting team (Leira) the Benfica fans would give us a look of death; so we decided to cheer for Benfica.

If we had time after our evening activities, we would try and go see what the night life was like. Restaurants closed at 10:30 pm and one of the best places to go were the Docks, which were a strip of clubs on the river's edge. Every place that we went into was playing American music so it didn't feel too foreign.

We are now in the Algarve region which is in south Portugal. We will spend five days here to go to the beach, practice, shop, and sight see. On March 10th, we went to watch the women's U.S. National soccer team play at the Algarve Cup. This is a tournament in Portugal of the best women's soccer teams around the world. After the game, which the U.S. won 4-0, several players from our team were able to meet and talk with the team. They also posted a comment about us on their own blog; the link is http://wnt-ussoccer.blogspot.com/.

It is great to share this opportunity with my teammates and coaches. We have one more game at the end of our trip, so we will have practices in preparation for the game and the upcoming spring season. We still have so much to see and do here and I'm glad we still have five more days!

Harvard's Carl Ehrlich describes a unique off-season training program.

Today, Harvard Football opened up an entirely new chapter in its already extensive repertoire of unique off-season training techniques.

Rising seniors such as myself have been around for hundred-yard partner wheelbarrows on the stadium field, towel fights (not literally a fight, but a battle to rip the towel out of an opponent's hands) in the sand pit, the "Daytona 500" push-up circuit in the mud outside of our weight room, and countless other seemingly Herculean tasks, but we may have found a new highlight in our off-season competitions. It's called the "Great American Tug Off," and I can almost guarantee that there is no program in the country that has experienced anything like it.

The "Tug" itself is a round, brown piece of plastic roughly a yard in diameter that can be filled up with water until it weighs roughly 100 pounds. On both sides of this soul-robbingly heavy disk are two handles and the usage directions probably read something like this;

1. One person stands on each side of the tug and grabs the handles.
2. Tug

With the purchase of the tugs, the company included shirts that the strength coaches proudly don that read "You can't hide from the tug,"

And I think this pronouncement pretty accurately summarizes the group sentiment towards the exercise. I say this in jest, only because of how exhausting it is to pull the tug (and consequently the other person) the five yards necessary to win. A quick Google search got me to their website, where the promotional video pronounced: "two players of equal strength could end up tugging forever" (how philosophic)!

Actually, I was in California for the unveiling of the tug, so I got a full summer of tug-lore before I was able to return to campus and see the beast with my own eyes.

So the "Great American Tug Off" consisted of four brackets, divided by positions, where the winner of each division advanced to the "Final Four." The contest mirrored the design of the March Madness brackets for basketball and was flawlessly designed by Coach Fitz with the steady consultation of strength coach and resident bracketologist, Tim "The Mullenator" Mullen. And in addition to all the pride associated with winning a competition like this, the tug champion would win 60 points for his team!

I think the tug is a good example of what makes our training program unique from other schools; it's designed not only to make you stronger and faster but it puts a large stress on making its players tougher.

The tug competition probably didn't make our 40 times drop or increase the team bench press, but it plays just as important of a role in team development. Especially coming off a season where we won the Ivy League Championship, it's important that no one in the program get a big head about football and the tug is maybe the greatest defense against this. It's hard to be full of yourself when the tug starts leaking and you're covered in "field turf mud," a combination of leaking tug water and the black pebbles from the field.

And a quick team update: After the Titans took down the 60 points from the tug competition, we are now sitting in second place and ready for our late spring-workout push.

Read the latest from North Carolina women’s lacrosse sisters Kelly and Kristen Taylor.

Sorry it’s been so long…wow, these past few weeks have flown by! Our season got off to a quick start with big wins against two top 20 teams, Loyola and Denver. After four great wins at home including our games against Albany and Brown, our fifth home game turned out to be a tough loss for our team.

This past Saturday we took a one-goal loss to the University of Pennsylvania. The final score was 8-7 with Penn scoring with 14 seconds remaining in the game. Losing is never easy, but those one-goal loses are always extra tough to swallow. You run through all of the things that could have been different and ways that we could have won the game. Nonetheless, we have learned a lot about ourselves as a team from that game and we are ready to move forward with those valuable lessons. With all the hard work and passion we put into being the best we can as a team, it is always hard to lose. But sometimes, as many great teams have demonstrated, losing a game gives a team that desire to never want to have that feeling again.

Our first loss isn’t the only thing we’ve been weathering here in Chapel Hill. We’ve been facing some tornado warnings down here in North Carolina this week; however, the rain has been a pleasant surprise during a time of an extremely severe drought. Whether it is on the turf or on our grass field, we have been and will continue to practice hard for our next challenge against Vanderbilt on Saturday. As a team, we have committed ourselves to pushing each other harder every day in practice so that we are well-prepared for every situation come game day. After our Saturday game against Vanderbilt, we will fly out to Oregon for a couple days during our spring break.

Our trip will begin with a practice at the Nike complex and will include many great meals, team experiences and West Coast sights, culminating in a big game versus the University of Oregon.

Can’t wait to fill you in on all of the spring break excitement and travels!!! Go Heels!

Kristen Feemster and Western Carolina begin Southern Conference tournament play tomorrow.

The Southern Conference tournament is here! During preseason when we were waking up every morning at 6:30 to run sprints, I never thought we would get to this point in the season. It seemed so far away. But it’s here now and all of the work we’ve put in over the last eight months will be put to the ultimate test this weekend.

Our practices this week were intense. They reminded me of studying for a big exam at the end of the year. Everything we’ve learned since the start of practice was brought up again and we made sure that everyone knew all the plays (especially me). I asked the coaches a ton of questions. Those who know me well know that I pretty much ask what I should do in every situation possible. Questions like, “Kellie, what if she goes over here? What do I do?” or “If she passes over there, where should I be?” Sure, we may be in practice a little longer, but knowing the answers gives me confidence going into a game.

There have been times in my career where I’ve had regrets after a game. I don’t like having regrets and I hope to leave everything I have out on the floor every night. Whether I play five minutes or 25 minutes, at the end of the game, I want to feel as if I helped our team be the best we can be. I think everyone on our team has the same attitude. Of course we want to have a great tournament individually but this team is the priority. Along with leaving everything out on the floor, mental toughness will be important. Playing defense again and again, even if you just got scored on, is a sign of mental toughness. Stepping up to the foul line and focusing on the shot, instead of the crazy band praying that you’ll miss, is being mentally tough. Continuing to hustle after every loose ball even though you only come up with one the whole game is mental toughness. Those two factors will be key during the tournament.

Plenty of people ask, “Are you ladies going to win it all?” Many people would automatically say yes but I don’t. I usually just say “I hope so!” Personally, whether w’ere picked to make it to the championship game or not doesn’t matter. Saying “Yes we’re going to win” weeks before the games begin means absolutely nothing once that ball goes in the air and the first whistle is blown.

Playing together and winning together is the best feeling and I’m not ready for it to be over. When we step on the court tomorrow, we have to be mentally tough and have no regrets once the final buzzer sounds because just like our team, our opponent doesn’t want their season to end either.

I know there have been some people curious as to why my name has not been on the lineups. At this point in time I am tending to an injury. As a result, it was in my best interest not to travel with the team to Australia. I will meet back up with the team in April at our Nebraska camp.

This was the first week away from our temporary homes in Vegas. The team traveled to Phoenix on Monday, and played a double header against ASU on Tuesday afternoon. Then on Wednesday morning, they traveled to Tucson to play a double header against the University of Arizona, and headed back to Phoenix following the game. It was nice to get back into game mode, especially since we will be playing lots of games once we reach the Australian soil.

On Thursday, the team jumped on a plane and headed to LA to play a single game against Northridge on Friday. Saturday was a well deserved day off, and the team had the option of using the day as they pleased. On Sunday, the team fitness tested in the morning, and then got packed and ready for the 14 hour flight to Australia in the evening. Once they land in Australia, they will be getting off the plane and heading straight to the field for a light practice. I think practice will serve as a good indication of who is a good flight sleeper.

The weather in Australia is supposed to be gorgeous, especially since it is summer time right now. The team starts their tour in Sydney, and will have the opportunity to train and play at the Olympic stadium from 2000.

I hope all is well with everyone, and I look forward to keeping you updated on our Australian tour.

The following was submitted by Matt Dobbins, a baseball student-athlete from Jacksonville University and member of the Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

During this past legislative cycle, a myriad of baseball-specific proposals have swept through my Division I Official Notice. This new legislation is full of changes that will revolutionize college baseball as we know it. Fostered by the Baseball Academic Enhancement Working Group, these proposals aim to decrease the unacceptably low APR in the sport of baseball. However, there is one piece of new baseball legislation that does not affect APR and simultaneously presents a great situation for student athletes.

Proposal No. 07-68 allows baseball walk-ons to be eligible for the one-time transfer exception without having an effect on an institution’s APR. But more importantly, this proposal echoes the mission of the NCAA: to support student-athlete well-being. Currently, baseball walk-ons are forced to sit out a year of competition if they decide to transfer to another Division I institution, which means an additional year with unnecessary monetary expenses for that student-athlete. Should we penalize these student-athletes for taking advantage of greater opportunities for themselves? I think not.

Further, Prop 07-68 forces baseball coaches to make informed decisions when choosing to give walk-ons athletics aid. If a coach decides to award aid to a walk-on, new legislation obliges them to give at least 25 percent equivalency. This presents a dilemma for coaches because they can no longer leisurely toss a book scholarship at a walk-on to persuade them to stay at their institution. Coaches must take a vested interest in their walk-on players via playing time or scholarships, because they will leave otherwise. Does this proposal work in favor of student-athletes? I think so.

Proposal 07-68 cultivates a situation where APR remains unaltered and the needs of the student-athlete will be met. In this momentary period of craziness for collegiate baseball, this proposal provides a little light at the end of the tunnel for baseball student-athletes as we ride this train of transition together.

SIUE's Amy Austin discusses the final games of her college career.

Five road games. Four road losses. Need I say more? We hit a very rough patch nearing the end of the regular season and it hurt us a lot. It just seemed like nothing was clicking for us anymore. No one had the killer drive to put teams away and it showed. We are fighting for our lives to even get into the conference tournament and these losses almost squashed every chance we had.

We are still alive though! This past Thursday we played decked out in all of our pink gear in what many other teams around the country participated; “Think Pink” night for finding a cure and raising awareness for breast cancer. We won this game with a total team effort and that killer attitude that we refuse to lose. This was our first (and hopefully not last) win out of three home games and now we MUST win these last two games to even have a chance at making conference.

I can’t even begin to tell you how hard it is knowing that I could have two games left in my career. These past four years have flown before my eyes. I don’t want it to end, and neither do the five other seniors and rest of the underclassmen. We have worked so hard and we are so much better than we are playing. Now it’s time to take care of business and leave it all on the floor because March 1st could be the last time we play together as a team.

On February 28th, we play the eighth-ranked team in the country in what should be an absolute dog fight. We went to the wire with this team at their place earlier in the year and you can guarantee we haven’t forgotten their 4-point play to take the lead and win the game at the buzzer. Then on Saturday, we play Rockhurst and its Senior Day!! I can’t believe it is finally my turn to be announced. I can still remember my last high school home game.

It’s a special day not only for me, but for my coach who has spent the past 29 years guiding and teaching so many players in more ways than just the basketball court. I can’t even put into words how much she, and our assistant coach have meant to me. Giving me the chance to not only play at a tough Division II school, but continue my education here at SIUE. I have had the best of times and will not regret anything I’ve ever done. Wish us luck as we head into our last two regular season games!

This Thursday night, Kyle Hines will have his number retired at UNC Greensboro. He will become the fifth men’s or women’s basketball player to have their number retired at UNCG and the first to do so while still active. However, we had to twist Kyle’s arm just to talk about the historical milestones he reached this week. So, maybe he’ll write about that in next week’s edition.

Welcome back everyone. I have to start by admitting that these blogs are becoming harder and harder to write with every entry. Each time I write, it gives me a realization that the end of my collegiate career is coming closer and closer. We only have three regular-season games and the conference tournament left. It feels like the grains of sand at the top of the hourglass are growing fewer and fewer. I definitely have a sense of urgency, now that every game I play could really in fact be my last.

When I left you guys last, we were preparing to face Davidson on ESPN2. Well, as most of you saw, it wasn’t the picture-perfect game that we envisioned. We ended up losing by nine, 75-66, because of turnovers and sloppy play. Looking back at the game I think that I personally started the game too aggressive. I should have let the game come to me a little bit more. I guess if you could take a positive out of the game it would be that I think we played one of our poorest games of the year and still had a number of opportunities to get back within a possession of the lead.

During that game I also joined a very elite statistical club -- 2000 points, 1000 rebounds, and 300 blocks in a career. There are only five people in NCAA history - Tim Duncan, Pervis Ellison, David Robinson, Alonzo Mourning and Derrick Coleman – that have achieved those marks in a career. I became the sixth member of the club during the Davidson game. It is definitely a great accomplishment to know that you have done something that only five other people in history have done. Also, there are less than a hundred that have ever had just the 2000 points and 1000 rebounds. The only thing I wish was different was that it was done in a win rather than a loss.

Two days after the Davidson game we traveled to Cullowhee, N.C. to play Western Carolina. We knew that this game was going to be a test for us because the atmosphere was going to be vastly different from the Davidson game. There wasn’t going to be a sold-out crowd or television cameras. We would need to bring our own energy and find a way to win the game.

We ended up winning the game by 12 and had four people in double figures. “KO” (Kevin Oleksiak) led the way with 18 pts. I scored 13 points and didn’t score my last six points until the final two minutes of the game. My teammates all thought that “the streak” was going to come to an end. (You aren’t supposed to talk about those things, right? Isn’t that how it works, never talk about a streak? So, I haven’t talked about it in the blog before.) I’m not going to lie, there was a point when it entered my mind and I thought it was over, too. Either way, we won and that is all that matters.

Dwayne Johnson also reached two career milestones by getting his 400th career assist and his 300th career rebound. The 300 rebounds is the one that I’m most impressed with because Dwayne is only 5-9 -- at best.

So, if you looked at the box score on Friday morning, you might have noticed that Dwayne and I didn’t start. Well, there’s a little story to that. Thursday morning, before the game, Dwayne and I were late to the team bus because we accidentally locked the keys in our apartment. I walked out the door and remembered that I forgot my keys. I turned to go get them but Dwayne had already locked the door. Whooops!.

We stood there for a while in the cold until someone could come and pick us up. It was a pretty stupid mistake but we definitely learned from it. We now have a spare key, so this situation won’t happen again.

So, I have to give a little attention to the other people in my life that are setting records, especially since I don’t like to talk about my own.

My little brother, Tyler, scored his 1,000th career point at Timber Creek HS during a game Thursday night. He became just the third boys’ basketball player in Timber Creek’s short history to reach that milestone. The other two are Tyler’s big brother (see, I really don’t like to talk about my own accomplishments!) and my high school teammate Kasmon Bownman.

(It’s down at the bottom of the story!)

My girlfriend, Gianna Smith, also plays basketball at Division II Adelphi University up on Long Island. She is approaching a career milestone herself. She is just 21 points away from becoming her school’s all-time leading scorer. I think she has two games left in her regular season. Hopefully, she will set the record in her next game on Wednesday night.

This upcoming week is really big for our team. We have a three-game homestand to close out the regular season starting with College of Charleston on Monday. If we win Monday, we will secure one of the five conference tournament byes. This is very important because no one in our conference’s long and storied history has won the tournament title without having a bye. Also with a win, it will still keep us in the hunt for a possible run at the North Division title.

Well that’s all I have for you this week. Wish us luck this week (and Gianna, too!).

Until next time…………Kyle Hines #42.

P.S. - I want to give a special shout out to Kevin’s mom. Thank you for the brownies. They were great!!!!!!!!! 

In conjunction with being the end of week four, this moment also serves as the end of our stay in Vegas. Time has honestly just flown by! Tomorrow we fly to Arizona to play a doubleheader against U of A, as well as a doubleheader against ASU. Then on Thursday we fly to Los Angeles to play a single game against Northridge on Friday afternoon. If anyone is in the area, please feel free to stop in at the game! On March 1st, we fly from LAX to Australia to train for another 3 weeks as a team.

The highlight of this week would definitely have to be the team costume party that was held on Friday night. The whole team got together for a bbq and it was mandatory that everyone came in a costume. Considering our lack of resources, as a whole, our team was pretty creative. We had some ghost busters, hooter girls, and lots more interesting costumes.

This past week was another practice week. Saturday was our last practice in Vegas, as well as our last practice before we start playing again. Aside from practicing, lifting and conditioning…on Thursday night we had another team karate session. This time around we got to be a little more active, and learned some self-defense moves.

Other than that, there is not too much more to report from my end. Thank you again to all my supporters. I look forward to keeping you filled in!

Harvard's Jessica Knox discusses her love-hate relationships.

In honor of Valentine’s Day having passed just last week, I have elected to write this “blog-isode” about love-hate relationships. Some people, like me, love Valentine’s Day. I embrace every opportunity to show love and affection to those whom I love and…affect. Others, the cynical ones, hate Valentine’s Day, condemning it as the commercial creation of greedy candy and card corporations. But I would argue that though, yes, Valentine’s Day might be somewhat over-commercialized, it also still represents a concept that in its purest state is all sweetness and loveliness. But I digress.

Love-hate relationships. I love my birthday, and the fact that I am now the nice round age of 22—a symmetrical, visually appealing number—also the jersey number of my lovely teammate, Liz Altmaier. But I hate that with every passing year I feel more and more like my actual age multiplied by my own jersey number, 4—that would make me 88-years-old, physically speaking…the sore back, the tendonitis knees, the cracking hip, etc. (I’m exaggerating…no need to be concerned.)

And love-hate relationships are abundant in the sport of basketball. Love the game, hate the politics. Love to play, hate the preseason workouts. Love to play defense, (frequently) hate the refs. Love my teammates, hate the opponents. Love the home crowd, hate the fans on the road. You get the picture.

This past weekend’s road trip to Cornell and Columbia offered a perfect example of a love-hate relationship in a basketball context. Though in this case, it would be more appropriate to describe the relationship as hate-love. The New York road trip began with a six-hour drive to Cornell. Hate it. But we also watched some great movies on the drive. Love it.

There was nothing to love about our game against Cornell. We suffered our worst Ivy League defeat that I can remember. Hate, hate, HATE it! We could not have played worse. I hate the feeling of not playing well, the feeling of not clicking as a team, the self-satisfaction of sneering Cornell fans, the post-game talk after such a bad loss. I hate it all. And I hate having to drive throughout the night to arrive at our next location at 2 in the morning.

But I love the Ivy League because you wake up the next morning, ready to get back out on the floor, seeking reparations for the injury endured the night before (or if you won the night before, you get to continue the reign of terror).

I love the way my team came together after the stinging loss we suffered at Cornell. I love that we broke down Columbia’s door and shocked them into a state of panic. I love how we fought and scrapped, even when the game stopped going our way. I love that we were a team that Saturday night, just one night after we looked as though we’d never met each other. And most of all, I love that one or two losses does not mean the end of a dream.

Kyle Hines writes about UNC Greensboro's recent four-game losing streak.

Welcome back everyone. It seems like it’s been forever since I’ve last written a blog entry. A lot has happened since that last entry, which ended during the long road trip to Statesboro, Ga. to play Georgia Southern.

Our game at Georgia Southern was a tough one. We had many opportunities to take control of the game and possibly come out of there with a win. In the last four minutes of the game, we found ourselves struggling to make a shot. We missed four out of the last five shots and missed six out of seven free throws. It also seemed like we couldn’t get the big defensive stop when we needed it to win the game. With all those factors combined, we still had an opportunity to win the game in the last two possessions but couldn’t convert. We ended up losing by two, 80-78.

Our next game we returned back home to face Wofford. We started off the game with a 19-4 lead. Then we slowly let Wofford back in it. They went on a 21- 8 run to close out the half and get within two. Much like the Georgia Southern game, we struggled down the stretch and couldn’t knock down free throws, shooting 7-18 from the free throw line. I had the opportunity to win the game in the final seconds. I made a drive to the basket and got fouled and was just one spin in the opposite direction of the ball from a three-point play. Instead, it rolled out and I got to the free throw line for two shots. I missed one out of two - that could have potentially sent us to overtime. We ended up losing the game by three, 59-56.

Our next game we traveled to Greenville, South Carolina to play Furman. In this game, we absolutely struggled. I guess we were still suffering a hangover from the previous two losses. We only shot 31 percent from the field and allowed Furman to pick apart our defense. We lost 69-59. Afterwards, our team was in a state of disbelief. We had just lost three games in a row and we were about to enter one of the most difficult portions of our schedule, facing Davidson and Appalachian State. We knew that we had to get back to playing the way we were playing previously or this season could take a drastic turn for the worse.

We came back home to host Davidson. This game could be described as the tale of two halves. The first half, we played really well holding Davidson to only 37 points in the first half and going into halftime with a 15-point lead. We led by as many as 20. But the next half was a totally different story as they outscored us by 20 points to win the game by five, 83-78. Our losing streak was now a season-long 4 games in a row.

Saturday, we hosted our division rivals Appalachian State. If you can remember when we played them last in Boone, N.C., they completely embarrassed us. They basically ran us out of the gym. Because of the rivalry, every time we play Appalachian State, the game carries a larger amount of significance. This time, though, it carried even more significance because it was Hall of Fame weekend. Among five people being inducted were our athletics director Nelson Bobb and associate athletics director Cathy Roberts. There were also a number of former Spartan players that were in attendance because former coach Larry Hargett was being inducted as well. Despite our four-game losing steak, we still had an opportunity to get back in the race for the Northern Division title.
We ended up playing really well and beating App State 79-55. We defended really well and caused them to struggle to get open shots. It felt good to get a win after going without one for almost two weeks. After the game was over we all handed the game ball to Nelson Bobb to celebrate his Hall of Fame induction. He was very excited and proud to receive the ball. He even hung out with us for the alma mater at center court.

On Tuesday, we travel south down towards Charlotte to face Davidson for the second time in seven days. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2. (Everyone in Sicklerville will be watching.) Davidson is a great team, but if we play our game for a complete 40 minutes this time, I think we can definitely be successful against them.

Well this is all I have for this week. Wish us luck for the upcoming week.

Until next time……………………………

Kyle Hines #42

Fresno State all-American Robin Mackin checks in from Las Vegas.

Welcome back everyone! I’d have to admit, writing these blogs really serve as a reminder of how fast time is going by. We have already completed week 3, and are about to wrap up our Vegas stint this upcoming week.

Beginning last Saturday and finishing this Sunday, we have played 11 games in seven days. We started the week off in St. George, Utah where we were blessed with absolutely beautiful weather. On Monday we played a doubleheader against Dixie State, followed by another two-game series against Southern Utah on Tuesday. From Thursday through Sunday, we competed in the Las Vegas Dessert Classic and competed against UTEP, Wisconsin, Portland State, Seton Hall and CSU-Bakersfield.

Aside from the days where we had doubleheaders, this week was a little less hectic than past weeks. Along with playing games, we continue to commit to a six-day lifting and conditioning regimen. Considering the point at which we are in the ‘grand tour,’ it is important that we continue to emphasize the importance of developing and maintaining our strength.

Tomorrow we have the day off with the exception of a vision training session. As a house, we are hoping that we might take advantage of the fact that we are living in Vegas and go see a show. It would be a shame to live in Vegas for a month, and have missed the opportunity to experience what Vegas has to offer.

Congratulations again to the softball team! The fans couldn’t ask for a better way to kick off the season.

Columbia's Brittney Carfora discusses the joy of loud bus rides..

This season began as a “season of lasts” for my fellow seniors, Michele Gage and Cate Taylor and me, since it is our last season playing competitive basketball. Although this is how it began, it has quickly turned into a season of firsts not only for us, but for the Columbia women’s basketball program in general. To be able to say that we are part of a “history-making team” is an honor.

Making history. What an amazing concept and a great feeling it is to say that my team has made history. Our road sweep last weekend has gotten us in the record books as the first Columbia women’s basketball team to ever complete a road sweep. Not only that, but our men’s team also swept, making it the first time that both Columbia basketball teams have completed a sweep simultaneously. What an incredible feat. We also became 4-2 in Ivy League play which marked the best-ever league record at that point in the season for our program.

Now there are many advantages to winning on the road but the one that I think my teammates and I can say that we appreciate the most is the honor of being able to speak, sing, dance—basically do whatever we please while on the bus. Unfortunately, a road loss earlier this season enlightened us to the nightmare of a silent bus ride. Let me tell you, one never wants to speak, sing, watch a movie, use their cell phone, or do anything that involves making noise more than when the freedom to do any of that has been taken away. Since we won both games on the road last weekend, this was not enforced and what fun it was.

After the game last Saturday, I remember turning to Cate and Jackie Klatsky and saying, “no silent bus ride!” This was followed by an eruption of laughter from the three of us because it is quite a torturous thing, especially when we have some talented singers on this team. I use the word talented loosely—it’s more like young women that feel the need to show their vocal range as much as humanly possible. There is nothing like a fun bus ride on the way home from a great victory.

Now that we have made some history already this season, I look forward to working hard to continue to make this one of the most memorable seasons for Columbia women’s basketball and hopefully without anymore silent bus rides!

NCAA staffer Brenda Reimer discusses her daughter's seventh grade basketball team and its role in the "Think Pink" effort.

Rally – it means to come together, to unite. That’s what the Hamilton Southeastern Junior High School girls basketball teams did last night - rallied to win a basketball game and rallied together for one of their own. This season has become less about winning and more about heart and appreciation for a team member’s mom who is fighting breast cancer.

Last night was a proud moment for me both as a parent and as an employee of the NCAA. As a parent, I witnessed as my daughter participated in an athletic contest that was about much more than a final score…a basketball game between two opposing and normally fiesty teams. But on this night there was unity, as the girls came together and wore pink socks, joining the officials who had pink whistles, uniting with fans who wore pink ribbons and pink t-shirts, and bringing together everyone in the building to “Think Pink.”

And as an NCAA employee, to see how our local junior high got behind the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s “Think Pink Week” promotion by wanting to honor a team member’s mother and be part of what female collegiate student-athletes across the country are doing was inspiring. These junior high girls look up to the college student-athletes, and were proud to unite under one color with their role models…to wear pink and raise awareness for this cause.

Isn’t that really what matters? Having a sense of a greater community, having heart, helping those in need, excelling and giving your all in everything you do? Isn’t that what we want from and what we see in so many of our female student-athletes from junior high to college? When these girls no longer remember the scores of their junior high games, the memories of nights like this will remain.

Thank you to the WBCA for so creatively bringing awareness for all of us through “Think Pink Week.” This shows what can come from a partnership between communities – university and extended – to benefit a community of women and men who are afflicted with this disease. Thanks to the NABC for their continued and inspiring work with Coaches vs. Cancer and the Jimmy V Foundation. Thanks also to the NCAA Women’s Basketball staff and committee for their support of these efforts along with NCAA officials through the Calling for a Cure campaign.

And a big thank you to the administration, coaches and student council at Hamilton Southeastern Junior High School, who grabbed hold of this effort and got so many people involved. And to the student-athletes on those participating teams last night who exemplified all of the character and heart we hope all of our student-athletes across the country display – thank you for making your parents proud.

On this Valentine’s Day and until we find a cure, I encourage all of you to continue to Think Pink!

Wheaton (Massachusetts) soccer player Jenna Stiegler had a unique opportunity to represent the United States in international competition during winter break. In this guest blog, Jenna discusses her experiences in Argentina at the 11th Pan American Maccabi Games.

First off, USA got the gold!! We played Brazil and two Argentinean teams, and did not give up any goals throughout the whole tournament. In the gold medal game we played against the better Argentinean team in the main stadium of the complex. Playing for the gold was the highlight of the trip. Just like all the international games, my USA team and the Argentinean team swapped jerseys after the final whistle. Not only was my team representing our country, but we were also standing for women’s competitive athletics in the USA. The ability to play against other countries as well as win the gold medal really made me realize how far women’s sports in America have come.

Our competitions took place at an amazing and huge Jewish sports complex called Hacoaj (which in Hebrew means strength). The facility had soccer fields, tennis courts, a basketball gymnasium, competitive swimming pools, and field hockey and volleyball facilities.

My team was made up of 16 girls from the ages of 18 to 22. We had girls from all over the US- from California to Texas to Massachusetts. Some of the schools represented included Boston College, Auburn, Brandeis and the University of Pennsylvania. All in all, my team was compiled of 16 talented women’s soccer players who were all committed to the game. I made some life-long friendships and loved every second of it.

One of the most memorable parts with my friends was walking into opening ceremony with them and all the other countries that were represented. Being able to share that experience with them was unlike anything else. It truly felt like the opening ceremony of the Olympics with all the lights, music, flags, and fans. There were more than 20 countries represented and more than 5,000 athletes.

Along with the soccer part of the trip, the Maccabi organization took us to some authentic Argentinean sites. We went to an estancia, which is an Argentinean ranch and ate the Argentinean style barbeque. I officially ate a whole cow while on my trip. Just when I thought that I was done with the meal, they still managed to bring out more. We also were able to visit Evita Peron’s museum, a Carlos Gardel tango show and many different districts (barrios) of Buenos Aires.

Every district we went to, there were always tons of vendors and families selling arts, jewelry, and other goods. Leather is very popular there so it wasn’t surprising to find berets, shoes, and anything else made out of leather.

The closing ceremony took place on the last day of competition. At the closing ceremony there were many entertainers who sang, danced, and even did acrobatics. This is the time when all the teams would trade different gear. Even though the USA apparel wasn’t the best looking clothing there, everyone wanted to trade for our things just because they said USA on them.

All in all it was a great experience. The chance to play soccer internationally was something I never even thought of. Being exposed to a new culture really helps you appreciate your own as well. The next Maccabi event is the official Jewish Olympics in Israel during the summer of 2009. I will be trying out sometime in the next year and hopefully I can continue my Maccabi and soccer experience that much longer.

Western Carolina basketball player Kristen Feemster shares her thoughts about Monday’s four-overtime win over Elon.

Monday’s game deserves an entire blog in itself. Our game against Elon is the longest game I have ever been a part of. I once witnessed my high schools boys’ basketball team go into four overtimes on the road, and all I could think about is when are we ever going to get home? Not this time. This time, it was my team.

My teammates often pick on me because I get really nervous watching other close games play out on TV. My heart pounds 1,000 beats a minute and my palms get really sweaty. I scream at every play and jump when something bad is about to happen. I always wonder what would I do in that situation? The answer is simple—play.

In our case, our hearts were already beating a thousand times a minute and our palms were already sweaty, because we had been playing for what seemed like a lifetime. In the heat of a game, like the one we played against Elon, there is no time for jumping every time you turn the ball over or miss a shot. You have to be smart about what you do, but if something goes wrong, you have to play and find a way to make up for it.

At the end of regulation and every overtime period (yes, there were four), we had to squash whatever happened in the last one and concentrate on the present. Each of us focused on winning regardless of how tired we were or how long it was going to take. If we were going to lose that game it wasn’t going to be because we did not play our hearts out.

We put a lot of trust in one another on this team. [Head Coach] Kellie [Harper] started new people during three of the overtimes so that our normal starters could rest before going back in. She trusted us to come in and hold down the fort until it was time for the others to come in around the 2 1/2 minute mark. When it was time to come out, we, in return, trusted whoever came in to get the job done. It’s great to know that every person on our team is capable.

Perhaps next year, when I’m absolutely dreading preseason and cringe every time I hear any kind of whistle, I’ll remember how all the hard work will help me when I least expect it. Just when I think I can’t sprint one last time, I will. When I feel like I can’t do another drill in practice, I will. When I feel like I can’t go for another loose ball, I will.

Because hard work really does pay off.

For the first time, the Double-A Zone will have sisters writing joint guest blogs, as North Carolina women’s lacrosse standouts Kelly and Kristen Taylor will be checking in with us throughout the season. Enjoy the inaugural post!

Hi everyone! Our names are Kelly and Kristen Taylor and we’ll be keeping you up-to-date with our season this spring. We are both members of the University of North Carolina women’s lacrosse team as well as members of the U.S. Developmental team.

We grew up in Syracuse, N.Y., in a “lacrosse family” with both of our parents playing lacrosse at Cornell University. Our dad works for Nike Lacrosse and our mom was our high school lacrosse coach. We also have a brother who is still a junior in high school and also loves playing lacrosse. The three of us grew up playing together in the backyard and our passion for the game has grown throughout the years.

We were fortunate enough to have the wonderful opportunity to play together again in college and be on one of the top teams in the country. 2008 is going to be a great year for our team; we have set high goals but we have been working hard all fall and preseason to make these goals a reality. A big part of our team’s belief is surrounded around integrity and doing what you say you’re going to do. With preseason coming to an end, the excitement is growing for our first game this Friday against Loyola. Preseason started back in mid-January and consisted of a lot of running, weightlifting, and practice to get us ready for the long and exhilarating season ahead. Just this past weekend, we hosted the annual South of the Border tournament and started off the season on a very positive note as well as having a ton of fun!

Our team here at Carolina is like a family. Although we are actually sisters, we feel as if we have 27 other sisters every day at practice. With goals of playing until late May in the postseason, we are bound to have a long journey of ups and downs and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to share them with you because as we’ve learned, “The journey is the destination.”

Until next time…GO HEELS!

Read the latest from Fresno State all-American Robin Mackin.

We have now completed week 2 of our first team tour. Outside of the softball field, this week consisted of several other fun team activities. On Monday and Tuesday evening, the team split in half to shop, prepare and serve dinner for everyone under the supervision of our nutritionist. Not only was it fun to enjoy the delicious food, but cooking for 25 people presented some very interesting challenges.

In addition to our team dinner, Mizuno came to size us for our gear and as every athlete knows, receiving new equipment and apparel is like Christmas all over again!

The highlight of the week, outside of getting some games under our belt, was the team martial arts session. On Thursday night, instead of doing our regular conditioning, the team met at a local karate school. We were encouraged to explore the power of our mind, as well as become aware of our 'chi'. It was an eye opening experience, and it will be interesting to try and incorporate those concepts in the softball environment. My roommates were so fascinated with the idea, that once we arrived home we did our own rendition of practicing our chi. Needless to say, we shared a lot of good laughs.

On Saturday and Sunday we got to play our first games! We played Washington Saturday night, and Texas Tech on Sunday morning. As with most team's first games, we gradually got back into game mode, and got rid of some of the 'first game rust.’ It was fun to see our team in action! We leave for Utah early tomorrow morning, to play a two game series against Dixie State and then Southern Utah.

Harvard's Jessica Knox can't stand watching close games.

I hate close games. HATE THEM. The Super Bowl this past Sunday? I almost died.

Close games are the worst. My heart pounds, my pulse races, I get butterflies, I get antsy. I utter unfiltered groans, yelps, and exclamations. I am a misery to be with during close games. I can’t help it. I’m an empathetic person.

And with my own team, in our own game…I wouldn’t say I’m worse, but I’m definitely not any better. Flashback to last Friday evening: we were playing Penn, and we had trailed the entire game. I sat on the bench, watching my team duke it out with one of the most physical teams in the league. With about a minute left, Niki (Finelli) hit a 3-pointer over the hands of two defensive players to bring us within one point of Penn. Then (Lindsay) Hallion intercepted the inbounds pass, and called a timeout as she teetered precariously over the baseline. OHMIGOD. I almost flipped.

The team and coaches huddled over two consecutive timeouts, confirming our strategy. Meanwhile, I hovered anxiously around the outskirts—in a fashion not too unlike how I imagine an expectant father might wait outside the delivery room…”will there be ten toes,” “will I be any good at this?” Yes, anxiety was running high. Okay, maybe not high enough to rival childbirth, but you get my meaning.

Anyway, timeouts ended, I sat back on the bench with my teammates, and I huffed and puffed. I hunched over, and fought the urge to reach out and grab the hand of Katie (Rollins), who was sitting next to me (poor girl). Instead, I used my index fingers to plug my ears—this odd behavior is somewhat of an instinctive response of mine to any situations that make me nervous or terrified: horror movies, thriller movies, embarrassing movies, scary parts in funny movies, and of course, close games. I still don’t know what plugging my ears accomplishes; it’s probably just a comfort mechanism, or maybe it blocks some of the incoming stimuli, thereby making the anxiety-inducing situation less anxiety inducing.
Or something.

So I was on the bench, plugging my ears, as my teammates went out to fight for the “W”. I was a mess. The clocked ticked so slowly. The crowd roared with anticipation (their sound was muffled, of course because my ears were plugged). And then finally, Harvard’s hero of the weekend, Emily Tay, drove and elevated over the middle of Penn players, dropping in just