"Teamwork Makes the Dream Work"

A couple years ago I wrote a blog that was featured on the Toledo Rocket's website. Here is the original link. I will copy the blog itself below as well.

http://www.utrockets.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=18000&ATCLID=205265077&SPID=38028&SPSID=327161

 A team is such an intriguing and amazing thing to be a part of. The dictionary defines team as "A group of people organized to work together." That does not nearly do it justice. Being on a great team is so much more than meeting new people and seeing them occasionally when you practice. The 28 players who make up this year's women's soccer team become your family, hate it or love it, you will see at least one of them every single day.

Being on a team is about the sacrifices we each make for the greater benefit of everyone else. Small scale or large scale, a sacrifice is a sacrifice. Before you can expect to succeed, you need to learn how to be a good teammate. It's the most important job you can do. Regardless of if you sit on the bench for the full match or play every minute, we are a team and we need everyone. If everyone fails to give their all at practice, it won't make any of us better.

We're lucky to be a part of something like this, and sometimes we take it for granted. If you think about it, we all get to have 27 guaranteed great friends with us at almost all hours. We always have someone to confide in, or someone who has your back on and off the field. We are each other's support systems and yes, sometimes we need to yell on the field, but then once we're off all you hear is, "So, wanna hang out later?" We may have frustrations towards each other on the field occasionally, but without the constructive criticism and tough love, the team will not progress.

With all these different personalities surrounding us at all times it can get crazy, but we all end up learning so much from one another. Using all of our minds combined, we can solve nearly any problem we face (except for maybe math). This season is a journey and it's inevitable that obstacles will arise. It's how we deal with them that will determine if we have what it takes to win the MAC. With a target on our backs all season, our work is cut out for us and every single one of us needs to step up. Every practice, every match, every film session and every ‘stretching' with Gretchen (Buskirk) matters. We will gladly accept the challenge and step up as a team, TOGETHER!!!

This blog post can never become outdated because the meaning of a team is something that will never change. They are your sisters, partners in crime, best friends. Being a part of a team is being a part of something that is larger than yourself. It is certainly a humbling experience that I would not trade for the world. Everyone should aspire to become a part of a team at some point.

Teammate Roast Part One

Pick on a teammate post! I have decided to pick on Brooke Lawler, a junior defender who also happens to be my roommate.

Brooke Lawler is obsessed with dogs. Seriously. She just got a puppy and will not stop talking about it. She drives an hour and a half every weekend to go see it. I  understand it's cute and all but SO AM I. I think I might be a tad jealous.

Brooke Lawler watches "her soaps" religiously. Her mom and her continuously chat on the phone about "Days of Our Lives" or "General Hospital" or whatever other soap that hasn't been cancelled yet. It's funny but also sort of strange. 

Brooke Lawler loves Dancing With the Stars. This is fine. When she tries to reenact it, however, is where it becomes a problem. She has broken many things in our kitchen so far, most remarkably not any of her bones! She allegedly took dance class for 10 years. I demand to see some proof of completion certificates because I am just not buying it. (You wouldn't either, believe me!)

Brooke Lawler is a drama queen. If she gets her hand caught on a door handle (yeah, it happens) you would think someone had just attacked her with a club. You can hear her yelps and over-exaggerations from at least the next state over. And no, I'm not exaggerating that. 

Brooke Lawler drives a VW Bug. This bug takes diesel. It smells like crayons. This is Brooke's pride and joy. When you drive past it you would think you were passing a semi truck. Nope. Just a bug.

Brooke Lawler is a fantastic teammate. She is #4, right footed, and plays defense with me. She never stops trying out on the field and that is exactly why we are so lucky to have her. 

Love you Brooke! 

A Look at the Life

Some people may be wondering of have wondered what it's like to be a collegiate athlete. As a collegiate soccer player at the division one level I feel I have the ability to describe this life rather well. You can't describe it in a word though. It's a lot of things. It's busy, it's fun, it's rewarding, it's hard, it's unlike any other experience you will ever have. That last part is what stuck with me when I talked to older girls who played in college before deciding if I wanted to play. A typical week during season for a division one women's soccer player will probably look something like this:

Monday: Classes all day. This is the day we have off of soccer but if you don't play much in the games over the weekend, you would do a hard extra workout.

Tuesday: This is the hardest practice day of the week. In the morning we have lifting from 6-7am. Then we go to class until practice. We have classes blocked off from 1-5pm. Most of the team will be in the training room by 12 pm to start heating muscles, using the rollers to get the acid out of our sore muscles, or doing therapy for injuries. We then will have a soccer portion of practice that ranges from 1-3:30 pm that is pretty vigorous. After that we usually have about 30-45 minutes of fitness. After we're done running we cool down for about 20 minutes and go back to the training room and repeat what we did before practice. Then some groups of players will have meetings with coach to watch film and talk strategy. When all that is finished, some people have night classes to go to.

Wednesday: Classes until practice 1-5pm. This practice is less intense and usually lasts longer than Tuesday's. We work on more functional stuff such as passing, shooting, instead of playing actual contact games. Class after practice (possibly).

Thursday: This practice is short but very intense. The day before a game is always run this way to ensure that our bodies have enough time to recover before the next day. We will play some fun contact games that usually get everyone very pumped up and competitive.

Friday: For home games, we will have a 45 minute kick around in the morning just to get us up and moving. A few hours after that we will go to a team lunch. Then about an hour after lunch we show up to our locker room about 2 and a half hours before game time just to ensure we have enough time in the training room and to change. Then we have a game for that takes about 2 hours. Afterwards, we will have a quick talk with our coach and then do whatever we need to do in the training room to help our bodies recover quickly.

Saturday: We have a morning recovery practice usually from 10am-12pm. It is a very light practice and mainly meant for people who didn't play much the day before to get touches on the ball.

Sunday: If it is a home weekend, we will have a team breakfast at 9am. Then we will get to the locker room 2 and a half hours early and do all the training room stuff. The game will last about 2 hours and afterwards there will typically be a cookout with the parents of the players.

After reading this, you may be thinking that that sounds like a lot to handle. It can be. But it's also worth it. I wasn't so sure that it would be when I first arrived as a freshman. There were many times I wanted to throw in the towel when I thought it was getting too difficult. Had I done that, I would not have grown into the person and player I am today. I owe a lot to soccer and am thankful for it everyday.