I couldn't think of a clever title at this hour.
Sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo... wow this blog writing business is harder than I thought it would be. (You kids and your darned technology... sheesh.)
Let me just start off by saying our opponents, the Indy Wildcats, were ready for us. They brought their intensity, their (approximately) 6 foot 8 inch 280 pound post player, and their smothering zone trap defense. Their crowd even brought it. ...And in the end it paid off for the Wildcats. We went down, 45-39.
I can honestly say it's about the worst team basketball we'd played in the four years I've been with the team. Aside from the fact that we just couldn't buy a bucket, our post defense was weak, we weren't getting on the floor going after loose balls, and we just couldn't get it together as a team. I'm almost surprised we didn't get completely destroyed. Haha.
We just had an off day; it happens to the best of teams, and we have to shake it off. Our next game is early (according to my standards) tomorrow morning at 10:10AM. We face Detroit's own Motor City Finest (who we beat last year in a close match) and hope to defeat them again.
Peace out.
Hannah.
P.S.: I scored seven points and kicked some arse. Mmhmm yeah you know how I do.
P.P.S.S.: MY TOE FEELS LIKE ITS BEING POUNDED MERCILESSLY WITH A HAMMER.
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Monday, July 16, 2007
Memphis Got Da Blues...
...'cause KC's got the better bar-be-cue and the better team. MV Eclipse 78, Memphis Elite 68. Eclipse advances to the next round in an 8:45 p.m. game Tuesday versus the Indy Wildcats.
I'll let Big Daddy give you the play-by-play. I will say, it was an emotionally exhausting game. The girls on the team don't understand why the parents are spent when it's the girls doing all the running around! They don't realize it takes a lot out of us to yell and scream and cheer and pray, while crossing all of our fingers and toes, whining at the refs and second-guessing the coaches!
Elvis has left the building...
I'll let Big Daddy give you the play-by-play. I will say, it was an emotionally exhausting game. The girls on the team don't understand why the parents are spent when it's the girls doing all the running around! They don't realize it takes a lot out of us to yell and scream and cheer and pray, while crossing all of our fingers and toes, whining at the refs and second-guessing the coaches!
Elvis has left the building...
Free Afternoon, What to Do?
Tournament tidbits from a lazy Sunday afternoon ...
With our only game of the day finished by 11, the girls and their families enjoyed some down time. Some went to the movies, some enjoyed a laid-back evening with friends who live in Cincinnati. The consensus is "Evan Almighty" was pretty funny and at the least a good escape from the rigors of basketball, while "License to Wed" was not Robin Williams' best work but had some awfully funny scenes, nonetheless. The mechanized robot babies were a hit with the girls.
Before we took in "License to Wed" we drove to a dog park on the other side of Cincinnati to let Bella have a good run. Of course she had a great time and Hannah and I played with an old frisbee we found. It never ceases to amaze me how you can have the best time when you do something spontaneous, that doesn't cost a ton of money, or involve a bunch of intricate planning.
Observation about this city: it's easy to get lost here. When this area was founded, a whole slew of townships sprung up, each with their own streets and street-naming systems. So, nowadays, you can drive from one township to another and into another in a matter of minutes and the street you're on will change names. Plus, the street signs are often difficult to read, with very small letters. It was a bit of a challenge finding the dog park at Mt. Airy Park. But it was worth it.
A few other tidbits:
-Sugar-free items are flying off Cincinnati store shelves. What with the team's no-sugar rule, families and girls are scrambling to find sugar-free versions of their favorite foods: sugar-free cookies, sugar-free fruit drinks and sugar-free pancake syrup.
-There are no Sonic drive-ins here, so one parent in particular is a little frustrated. Seems he goes for a large Sonic Diet Coke every day. And no, it's not this author.
-On just about every block you'll find a chili restaurant. Cincinnati is famous for Skyline Chili, often served over spaghetti noodles. Kansas City has its barbecue, Cincinnati has its chili. We haven't tried the chili yet, so I guess I'm in no position to say I prefer barbecue.
Today's game, the first in bracket play, is at Courts4Sports. (We have yet to play in a real high school.) It's a manic sort of place, with six basketball courts and at least four games going at once. With a lofty metal ceiling, you can bet this cavernous place can get awfully raucous. Parents and siblings will have to cheer loud to be heard.
Our opponent is the Memphis Elite, winner of Pool N. Two pool winners squaring off, two good teams. Expect a very good game. --Big Daddy
With our only game of the day finished by 11, the girls and their families enjoyed some down time. Some went to the movies, some enjoyed a laid-back evening with friends who live in Cincinnati. The consensus is "Evan Almighty" was pretty funny and at the least a good escape from the rigors of basketball, while "License to Wed" was not Robin Williams' best work but had some awfully funny scenes, nonetheless. The mechanized robot babies were a hit with the girls.
Before we took in "License to Wed" we drove to a dog park on the other side of Cincinnati to let Bella have a good run. Of course she had a great time and Hannah and I played with an old frisbee we found. It never ceases to amaze me how you can have the best time when you do something spontaneous, that doesn't cost a ton of money, or involve a bunch of intricate planning.
Observation about this city: it's easy to get lost here. When this area was founded, a whole slew of townships sprung up, each with their own streets and street-naming systems. So, nowadays, you can drive from one township to another and into another in a matter of minutes and the street you're on will change names. Plus, the street signs are often difficult to read, with very small letters. It was a bit of a challenge finding the dog park at Mt. Airy Park. But it was worth it.
A few other tidbits:
-Sugar-free items are flying off Cincinnati store shelves. What with the team's no-sugar rule, families and girls are scrambling to find sugar-free versions of their favorite foods: sugar-free cookies, sugar-free fruit drinks and sugar-free pancake syrup.
-There are no Sonic drive-ins here, so one parent in particular is a little frustrated. Seems he goes for a large Sonic Diet Coke every day. And no, it's not this author.
-On just about every block you'll find a chili restaurant. Cincinnati is famous for Skyline Chili, often served over spaghetti noodles. Kansas City has its barbecue, Cincinnati has its chili. We haven't tried the chili yet, so I guess I'm in no position to say I prefer barbecue.
Today's game, the first in bracket play, is at Courts4Sports. (We have yet to play in a real high school.) It's a manic sort of place, with six basketball courts and at least four games going at once. With a lofty metal ceiling, you can bet this cavernous place can get awfully raucous. Parents and siblings will have to cheer loud to be heard.
Our opponent is the Memphis Elite, winner of Pool N. Two pool winners squaring off, two good teams. Expect a very good game. --Big Daddy
Sunday, July 15, 2007
Everybody Out of the Pool
Some teams have thrown in the towel, but not the Eclipse, winding up pool play with a splash in a decisive 86-43 win over the Lady Blazers of Illinois. Too bad all games can't be like these last two.
Winning our pool allows the Eclipse to maintain our No. 3 seed in the tournament, and makes us one of just four teams to earn a first-round bye. In all, 32 teams (from the original 95) advance to the Championship Bracket. The rest play in the consolation, or Classic, bracket.
As U-13s, this is the last year that AAU Nationals is a double elimination tournament. If a team loses once, it can still fight it's way back through the "losers' bracket." We don't want this, because it means playing more than one game a day. It's exhausting. That said, we've done it before!
Tip off is 3:30 p.m., Monday. Don't yet know who our opponent will be.
Winning our pool allows the Eclipse to maintain our No. 3 seed in the tournament, and makes us one of just four teams to earn a first-round bye. In all, 32 teams (from the original 95) advance to the Championship Bracket. The rest play in the consolation, or Classic, bracket.
As U-13s, this is the last year that AAU Nationals is a double elimination tournament. If a team loses once, it can still fight it's way back through the "losers' bracket." We don't want this, because it means playing more than one game a day. It's exhausting. That said, we've done it before!
Tip off is 3:30 p.m., Monday. Don't yet know who our opponent will be.
Saturday, July 14, 2007
Day and Knight
"Air Bella" wished the girls well this morning.Two games. Different as Day and Knight.*
One was a too-close-for-comfort 55-53 win over the tall and talented Philadelphia Belles. In Game 2 the Eclipse bedeviled the Central Kentucky Angels 69-21, thank heavens. Eclipse 2-0.
*Note that our coach is James Knight.
Friday, July 13, 2007
My Son, The Ace
Guess who shot his first-ever hole in one on Thursday? For those who track these things, Matt used a 7 iron for his ace on No. 8 at the Nicklaus Golf Club at LionsGate in OP. Congratulations to Matt and may this be the first of many! We love you!
No Swimming, But We Do Have "Pool Play"
We arrived at our Ohio hotel about 10:30 p.m. Thursday. It's about 615 miles from home, and we stretched it into 12 hours with several "potty" stops for Bella (and others!). She exceeded expectations for good dog behavior in the car, readily accepting her doggy seat belt, taking several good naps in the back seat and breaking in the "no-spill" water bowl. Bella especially enjoyed our picnic dinner at the Steak & Shake outside Indianapolis.
The Eclipse girls are on a "no sugar" rule and are not allowed to swim in the pool or otherwise exert themselves off the basketball court. This is serious business! They play a lot of cards and braid each others hair.
Coach Knight assures us Friday is a busy day with a team practice in the morning, and the regimented AAU registration in the afternoon. Each girl has to sign in, prove identity, age and AAU membership. It's always kind of a big deal at Nationals.
Late Friday afternoon the girls will attend a player party where they trade their club pins with girls from the other teams. It's always fun to see the pin collection and all the different communities represented at Nationals. That's followed by Opening Ceremonies at 7 p.m. -- think Olympics with every team parading into the arena in their uniforms carrying their team banners.
Then, lights out @ 11:00 p.m.
"Pool Play"* begins Saturday with a Noon game v. Philadelphia Belles and a 7:00 p.m. game v. Central Kentucky Angels. Sunday we play the Illinois Lady Blazers at 10:15 a.m. Bracket play begins Monday and it is very important that we win our pool in order to maintain our No. 3 seed. *Each team in the tournament is assigned to a "pool" of 4 or 5 teams. The purpose of pool play is to determine the seedings for the Championship bracket. Of the 90+ teams registered, only 32 will advance to the Championship bracket.
Please keep Hannah and her Eclipse teammates in your thoughts and prayers. We'll keep you posted!
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