March 21, 2013

As I lay in the hotel bed, laptop propped up against my knees, Alex Quincey and Jamie Fink on my sides, I am thankful for a moment to breath. It is funny to think how tiring a relaxing trip to Hawaii can be for 20 plus student athletes. You would think we would be accustomed to the grind. Yet each night, my roommates and I climb into bed, sunburned, itchy from the bug bites freckling our legs, and exhausted, unable to make it past the five minutes of hotel television that lulls us to sleep.

This morning, we shake the sand from our toes and put our game faces on. Tonight, we will face the University of Hawaii. We are excited - ready to fight for our teammates in the game we love most.

There is a new feeling in the air; I feel that we are becoming something new. As a team, we are being reborn. This week, we have hiked together through the Hawaiian forest. We have biked down the hills of Waikiki. We have surfed together, and swam under the wild waves of the North Shore. I know now, that even though T doesn't like pool workouts, she is natural on a surfboard. I know now, that Marlee, Erin, Megs, Heather, Caroline, and Quinc were volleyball players in a past life. I know now, that Trevor enjoys Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, and likes to spit his own rhymes during the instrumentals. I know now, that Ashley Nick has a family in the Netherlands that she Skypes often, and that Coach D hates Skippy peanut butter.

This past week, our team is being solidified. We are more than competitors - we are family. And my hopes are high that this feeling, this growing bond, will carry us to great heights. Tonight, we set our eyes on Hawaii, and in the back of our minds, we know that we are one step closer to the championship.