Sept. 4, 2008

WASHINGTON, D.C. - So we just came off of our first tournament, and all of the hard work and effort that we've put into our preseason training has finally paid off. We played in the DC challenge and went up against our local opponents, George Mason, American, and George Washington. I have to say that I am so proud of our team! Everyone played so well and put so much effort into each of our games; I simply couldn't have asked for more.

On Friday, we took on George Mason at their field house, one of the hottest gyms I've ever played at; I'm pretty sure we were wiping the floors down between just about every other point to make sure no one slipped. I was so pleased with the outcome of our first game- we won in three! We swept a challenging and formidable opponent, and with that momentum, we were ready for day two of the tournament.

On Saturday, we played against American and George Washington. When we walked into George Washington's gym, all I could think about was how excited I was to see how the Hoyas matched up to our neighboring rivals. As we were ushered into our makeshift locker-room, a racquetball court, everyone ducked their head to fit in through the tiny door, (I gave a courtesy duck considering that, unlike my teammates, I could easily fit through the six foot clearance). We got ready to go into our next two matches by belting out the classic, Mariah Carey's "Always be my Baby." This time around the song was really interesting because we forgot to bring speakers, so we were going off of Kiersten's iPod, with her and Kit leading the vocals. Nonetheless, it felt great to be getting ready for a game again with my team; it was a feeling that was greatly missed during the summer and preseason.

American was our first game on Sunday, and unfortunately, we fell to them in three close games. It was a challenging match, and one that we weren't very pleased about, but we took it as an incentive to come out stronger and more aggressively against our last opponent- George Washington. This last game was so amazing; we all came out with so much energy and desire! All of our determination and hard work helped us take the Colonials in three games. I was so excited to see everyone playing so well! Sara Manley and Caitlin Boland were both named to the all-tournament team; Sara posted her first double-double this weekend and Caitlin led the team with assists.

I am so pleased with how everyone played. I can't wait to see how we do this weekend at North Carolina- I am hoping we can take the momentum from last weekend and continue to play at the high level we've been training for.