This week's blog entry was submitted by sophomore middle hitter Kelly Biette of Brighton, Colo.
Hey fans! As many of you (hopefully) know, we're almost halfway through our season with a 6-8 record. We've played quite a few exciting matches, including eight that went to five sets, and come away with some great wins. Two such triumphs occurred this last weekend, when we beat Gonzaga and Idaho in Spokane, Wash.
However, I think that some of you might like to know what Game Day looks like for our team. While the matches are a display of our efforts to improve and cultivate a winning mentality, many hours of preparation go into each contest. When we're playing on the road, we usually travel the day before. This provides many opportunities for our team to hang out, laugh, eat, and dance. The Sea-Tac Starbucks must look forward to our travel days, because many of us will hit that up, along with the Great American Bagel Bakery on our way to the gate. The plane and trip to the hotel are relatively uneventful, but for our team, Game Day often starts the night before. We watch raw film and take notes about the next day's opponent, with each position noticing specific keys that will help them. Teron, Shannon and Kalin reveal a preliminary "game plan," which they continue to develop late into the night.
Once we return to our rooms, a variety of behavior occurs until it's time for bed. Most of us call our parents and keep them updated regularly, and Karli likes to text hers about getting a dog named Lola. Since school hasn't started yet, we don't have to worry about studying! Most of us fill the extra time by watching movies, texting, and reading. (The bestselling series The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson is a current favorite amongst our team.) However, on some nights, you can find dance parties featuring Alf's "Pop, Lock and Drop It" dance moves and Sarah Jaeckel's rendition of the Thizzle Dance. Also common are frequent attempts to relate everyday experiences to Harry Potter. In case you were wondering, Julia's real name is Voldemort Bonadio and she plans to name her first child after the evil wizard. Emily (Del) can do a darn good impression of Griphook the Goblin and looks like Luna Lovegood. Some days, when practice is a challenge, we refer to it as "Potions Class" and to Teron as Snape. And while we're very good at following nutritional guidelines set by our trainer Megan Ramsey, it wouldn't be wise to leave a bag of Peanut Butter M&Ms lying around for our team to find. And subsequently demolish.
The next morning, we wake up, go to breakfast, and return to Teron's room for rotational film of whoever we're about to play. The coaching staff usually stays up late charting shots and patterns to help us out. Then we leave for the gym and begin to prepare for our upcoming match. When we go to interesting places, Megan Augustavo likes to take pictures near mascots and interesting water features. We all make it to the locker room, and some of us need pre-game tape or athletic training. Our typical locker room pre-party features lots of ipods, rap music, and occasional dancing. Drake, Nicki Minaj and Miley Cyrus are pre-game favorites. Jordan Keller can always be found blasting Jet's "Are You Gonna Be My Girl?" into her headphones, but the rest of the room can always hear it. While we put on our gear, we're focusing as well as getting pumped for the game ahead. Eventually, everyone is ready and the coaches come in for one last preparation meeting. Then, Jamie leads the setters out with the rest of the team to follow shortly. We go through our game warm-up and change our jerseys. Then we pray as a team and enter the arena with our traditional "S what? SU!" cheer.
While our opponents continue to change, the traditions we are building are consistent on each trip and before each competition. I hope this gives you a bit of insight into how much preparation goes into each match, but also a glimpse of how much fun we have together. Thanks for all of your support, both on and off the court!