Thursday, February 28, 2008
Hey everyone!!
I know I haven't written in a long time, but we were in the middle of a redesign of my website. I wanted to wait until it was finished to write again. After all, a new look wouldn't be complete without a new entry! =)
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, New Year's and Valentine's Day. Yes, it's been that long since I checked in. Sorry, I won't let it happen again.
I was fortunate enough to spend Christmas in Houston with my family and New Year's in Austin with my best friend, Tina Boutelle. It's always nice to be back home in Texas, especially since my new home, Chicago, is covered with snow.
The end of 2007 and beginning of 2008 were filled with a lot of National Team training. We had training camps every month, and began our lifting and conditioning workouts. Our camps consisted of practice and tons of intrasquad scrimmages. We kicked off our Bound for Beijing tour on Feb. 19, which we were all anxious for. I think we were all tired of facing each other.
We started the tour against the reigning National Champions, the Arizona Wildcats. It took us a little while to get going, but eventually our offense ignited and the pitchers settled into the circle. Sometimes no matter how hard you try to mimic real games, the juices just don't flow the same.
After Tucson, we bused to Palm Springs, Calif. This particular bus trip was a quiet one. I don't know if it was the week of working out, practicing and our first game that wiped us out, but for five hours I don't think I heard a peep. I couldn't sleep, so I stayed up listening to my iPod, reading a book (Sisters Keeper) for the team's book club we started, and watching Grey's Anatomy on my computer.
The tournament in Palm Springs has always been great, with a bunch of the top college teams from across the country, but my favorite part of our trip was facing the All-Star team comprised of former college players, some who play in either the NPF or the PFX. Tina was on this team, and after weeks of reminding me not to hit her like last time we faced each other in 2004, I am happy to report I didn't even get close to hitting her.
On our days off, I come back to Chicago and our team here at DePaul. We have a great group of girls who make me feel right at home every time I return. I am learning so much here, and I really enjoy coaching. It's worth every minute to see a pitcher's pitch move just a little more or for a hitter's swing to become a little better. I said my goodbyes to them this morning as they head down to Georgia for the weekend. I am confident they will have a good showing. Good Luck Demons! =)
We head out to Florida today. We start at our East Coast training facility in Altamonte Springs, then head down to Hollywood, Fl. and finish up in Clearwater and the Under Armour Invitational.
We are glad to be on the road again … and I promise I'll update you more often now that we're on the road.
Until next time …
Cat
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