Big wins... and an upcoming challenge

We had our final regular season home game of the year last night and came away with another victory (our fourth in the last five games) by beating Husson, 87-77. It was a great night for our captain, Katie McCabe, who played unbelievably in her final game at Colby! Everyone on the team was so happy to be able to send Katie off with a win and see her play so well. She has been a great leader for us this season, especially with so many young players and we all want to win so much for her!

Last weekend, we had two NESCAC home games and, following a tough loss to Amherst on Friday night, we came back on Saturday and beat Trinity in a really exciting game. It was especially meaningful because it was Katie's “Senior Day” on Saturday. She was honored before the game along with her parents, given a collage of photos and flowers. She was so focused and determined during the game, constantly telling us, “We will not lose this game” every time we huddled. Her encouragement and conviction really motivated us. The win was especially important for the NESCAC playoffs, as we are now in great shape to continue our season!!!

After the game, we had some desserts in the trophy room to celebrate Katie’s career, and the victory. Two former players, Kim Condon and Mandy Cochrane, joined us and spoke about their experiences as players and how important it is to remain involved and supportive. They also reminded us how quickly our college years fly by.

This Saturday, we play at Bowdoin in another NESCAC game. Bowdoin beat us in December at Colby, so that is still fresh in our minds. They are a good team and it’ll take a great effort to beat them. I think we are excited for the challenge and opportunity this weekend.

(I am purposely ignoring the Super Bowl, as it was painful to watch and I would rather not relive it. One of the drawbacks of having some New Jersey players on the team is having to listen to one, in particular, gloat about the makings of a “Giants Dynasty”.)

Jan Plan comes to an end

Jan Plan is finally winding to a close as today was my last day of pottery (tear, tear). It’s very hard to think about having four classes again, but I think everyone looks forward to having more of a schedule moving forward. My friends that don’t play a winter sport always tell me how jealous they are of me that I have something to do. I mean, how many seasons of “The O.C.,” “24,” and “Friday Night Lights” can one person possibly stand to watch?

Although at first it was challenging to balance basketball with academic life, going to the gym becomes a sort of break from the monotony of library cubicles and classrooms. I really welcomed having a set schedule that I could do homework and study and a time that I could run around and have fun. At first, I worried that long bus rides would mean no time to do work. However, the bus becomes a pretty quiet place to study and there is usually someone on the team who has taken the class that you are studying for. Also, if you’re not the type of person that can do work on a bus, away games force you to get all your work done earlier. I think I ended up writing better papers and studying more for exams because I did not have the option of leaving all my work for the night before. Instead, I did it all before the bus rides and I was able to relax more and sleep. (In retrospect, my ability to find extra time to sleep has become a pretty common theme in these entries!)

Our First NESCAC Weekend

This past weekend, we headed to Middlebury and Williams for our first NESCAC games of the season. For the freshmen, this was an entirely new experience for a good majority of the team. We left Friday morning at 8:30 to avoid the impending snowstorm. Settled comfortably on the bus, I awoke to Coach McBride telling us we were free to go shopping before lunch in Lebanon, New Hampshire, which is always good news! We all walked around for a while, buying everything from fudge to sunglasses shaped as palm trees (good choice Mary Cummings). After a delicious lunch at Chili’s, we got back on the bus and finished our trip to Middlebury.

Our first NESCAC game of the season was an exciting one and although we ended up losing by only two points, I really feel like we worked together and put everything we had into the game. It was a back-and-forth battle and something that will definitely make us better in the long run. We had dinner on the bus on our way to our hotel, a 90 minute ride south on the way to Williams, our opponent the following day. Although Julianne Kowalski described this hotel as coming from the movie “Psycho,” it was very quant and really fit into the scenery. The next morning, we woke up and went over game film and the scouting report for Williams. After an awesome breakfast, we went shopping again at the Manchester outlets to kill some time before heading to Williamstown.

We had another tough loss against Williams, falling behind early and never really being able to make up the difference. Although the losses this weekend were really frustrating, I think we experienced what a typical NESCAC weekend is like and how we need to be both mentally and physically prepared for each game. To sooth us a bit on the ride home, we feasted on food provided by parents. Mary’s dad brought us a cheese plate, shrimp, and chips and salsa and Karlyn (like always) had an abundance of fruit. On the ride home some people did school work, while others listened to music or talked to each other. Despite the losses, everyone seemed to be in a decent mood and more in tune with what we need to do moving forward to be competitive in the NESCAC.

This trip was especially exciting because Coach Sid succeeded in consuming over 30 shrimp. Heather “Boo” Pratt also explained the phenomenon of the “bathroom dance” from her elementary school (make sure to ask her about this; I think Coach Sid was crying from laughing so hard as she told this story). We arrived back at school around 10:30, a bit tired, but ready for the night ahead!

Coach McBride Fills In...

With Abby fully immersed in clay and preparation for our NESCAC opening weekend at Middlebury and Williams, I figured I'd give Abby a respite and provide my own entry. Thus far, it has been a fun season of growth and development and today, I received an intriguing piece of news about our "youth movement".

A sports information person at Lebanon Valley commissioned a study on the youngest teams in the country at the Division III level and, lo and behold, Colby seems to be the front runner in the informal poll. The make-up of our team (1 senior, 2 sophomores, 8 first-years) is unique, but never did I consider just how unique it truly was.

Through our first 11 games, our newcomers account for 69% of the minutes played and, when you factor in our two sophomores, the number jumps to around 84%! Lebanon Valley, which starts four freshmen just as we do, receives 66% of its minutes from rookie players. That is pretty impressive and a great reminder of how youthful we really are. When you look at championship teams - no matter what the level - there is a certain level of experience on each team that plays a large role in the success. Except, perhaps, for the Michigan men's teams from the 90's, you'd be hard-pressed to find a team dominated by youth that has competed well on a national level. So, when I look in the eyes of our freshmen, I see a world of potential and know that whatever we experience this season - both the good and the bad - we'll be better for it in the coming years.

In the morning, we board the bus for a trip to Middlebury, VT, hoping an early departure will minimize the snow's impact on our trip. With back to back games, we'll have a real great opportunity to use what we have learned thus far on the clean slate of NESCAC play in front of us.

A Milestone for McCabe, and more pottery!

Back on the court on Wednesday, we traveled south to face Gordon College and won our second game of the season! Although it was a long ride, it was worth it for the win. When we arrived to the gym for our warm up, they were playing Colbie Caillat’s “Bubbly” (one of Coach Sid’s favorite songs off her C.D.), which isn’t exactly the best music to get fired up for a game, so we didn’t know exactly what we were in for. The real warm up consisted of “old school” Jock Jams, a personal favorite of Katie McCabe’s. This game was also exciting because Katie scored her 1,000th point! Everyone on the team was so proud of her, but all she was concerned with was that we won. Her success is something each of us, as freshmen and sophomores, aspires to attain.

Coach McBride gave us the day off on Thursday, so after pottery class, I ventured off campus and grabbed breakfast at Tim Horton’s. This may not seem like a big deal for some, but for those of us from Massachusetts “Timmy Ho’s” is a slice of heaven. It just opened in Waterville this fall, another comfort of home for so many of us who have chosen to spend our college years in Waterville. For those who haven’t traveled to Waterville, or haven’t been here in a while, there are a lot of great off-campus options. (In addition the dining halls which, as good as they are, require a break once in a while.) Waterville has the traditional places like Applebee’s and Ruby Tuesdays, but also some great places downtown like the Bread Box, Blues Café and the Last Unicorn. We did a team meal after the holidays at Ruby Tuesdays, for example, and it gives us a chance to spend some time away from the campus.

We then took advantage of the evening by watching the men’s team beat Husson. Many of us are free from classes on Friday, so we’ll spend the day sleeping, shopping in nearby Freeport, and preparing for our game at Mitchell College on Saturday, which will require a 7 am departure from campus.

Back to Reality...

Off the plane on Sunday, we were presented a crisp dose of reality, as sub-freezing temperatures and the impending start of Jan Plan classes the following day quickly transferred us from the dream world of Florida, back to reality. As you may or may not know, Colby’s Jan Plan is a mid-semester period during which each student takes one class for the month of January, or conducts an independent study or participates in an internship. This year, I chose a pottery class. One would think pottery would be an easy class, however the first day of class we were required to make 100 coils of clay, just so the teacher knows we can make a clay worm. It was also a telling sign of the amount of work we’d be required to do. Some of my teammates are also taking interesting classes, such as Mary Cummings and Meredith Aronson, immersed in an African drumming class, while Beth Bartley is doing an internship with an orthopedic surgeon, giving her an opportunity to sit in on surgeries and such. I think I’ll stick to vases and coffee mugs!

Thursday-Getting Ready to Play

Waking up for our second full day in Florida, we were expecting another dose of tropical weather with plans for more beach time. To our dismay, the weather was overcast and windy. We toughed it out though and sat by the pool in sweatpants and sweatshirts and covered ourselves with towels. (As chilly as it was, it was still warmer than Maine!!!) Picture this: 12 girls sitting by a pool, sipping hot chocolate in sunglasses. Each time the sun would reappear through the clouds, we would throw off our towels and as Boo said, “Let the sun hug us.” After lunch, we boarded the bus to Fort Lauderdale to get ready for the tournament. We left Miami with fond memories of the pampering and first-class accommodations, but also focused on the games ahead.

We went straight to our pre-game practice, which involved some running and a lot of shooting. For dinner, we explored Fort Lauderdale. Some of us went to Outback Steakhouse, while others ate Mexican or went to Bubba Gump’s Shrimp Factory. After we checked back in with our coaches, we sunk into bed to get a good night’s sleep before our game against nationally-ranked Medaille. We knew we’d need to be on top of our game to compete and all wanted to make sure we were well-rested and ready to play!