Elise Fugowski and Brittany Taylor's team (Hudson Valley Quickstrike Lady Blues) beat Brittany Tegeler's team (Washington Freedom) 4-2 on Sunday. I believe that Tegeler scored both of her teams goals.
Brittany Taylor has apparently recovered from her injury. She scored a goal that was said to have been pretty ridiculous. It was scored right around halftime from 25 yards out and it went into the upper corner of the goal. Apparently it wowed the coaches and crowd. I was not there, just passing along the information.
2,115 people were at this game. Fugowski and Taylor's team is now 3-0-0
I have yet to see Brittany Taylor play. The Mayor of Storrs has said she is pretty good. I didn't go to any games in 2006 or 2007. In 2008 Taylor was injured from an ACL Tear...atleast I got to see Stephanie Labbe play. I'm glad I saw her. Plus she's a terrific person who is impossible not to like.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
A Walk Off Grand Slam
As I tuned in to the very end of a softball game on ESPN2 I saw that Florida beat Alabama on a Grand Slam in the bottom of the 7th inning to go on to win 6-5. The girl who hit that grand-slam was 0-9 going in to that at bat.
I love Ice Road Truckers and The Greatest Catch...I try to watch those or re-runs if they are on TV. Also Family Guy, The Simpson's and Law and Order. Usually those are the shows I catch on TV...if they don't involve sports. I'll turn on the News too.
Anyway here is a piece of advice for everyone: Seek out good, normal, decent people in life. (There are a lot of people who I write about who would qualify) Sounds simple, but don't be blinded by just money or looks. Judge people by who they are and not what they have. Just remember, I told you so. If they are good looking but plan emergencies to make sure that you have no life...or if they only tell you when they win at the casino's (and not that they mortgaged your house to cover for the losses) then they are not worth it.
Thankfully that's not from my experiences, but from a couple of family members who I love...they were just blinded by other things when they were our age...and got stuck with these people for a long time. Now they both regret their decision.
Obviously a phone call from a family member just inspired those last two paragraphs.
I love Ice Road Truckers and The Greatest Catch...I try to watch those or re-runs if they are on TV. Also Family Guy, The Simpson's and Law and Order. Usually those are the shows I catch on TV...if they don't involve sports. I'll turn on the News too.
Anyway here is a piece of advice for everyone: Seek out good, normal, decent people in life. (There are a lot of people who I write about who would qualify) Sounds simple, but don't be blinded by just money or looks. Judge people by who they are and not what they have. Just remember, I told you so. If they are good looking but plan emergencies to make sure that you have no life...or if they only tell you when they win at the casino's (and not that they mortgaged your house to cover for the losses) then they are not worth it.
Thankfully that's not from my experiences, but from a couple of family members who I love...they were just blinded by other things when they were our age...and got stuck with these people for a long time. Now they both regret their decision.
Obviously a phone call from a family member just inspired those last two paragraphs.
I just read this headline
A headline I saw said that the Knicks covet Hasheem Thabeet.
Thought it was interesting...no comment on whether that's good or bad for Hasheem.
As I'm reading into it, it appears as if the Knicks would need Thabeet to fall to 3rd in the draft if they were to have a chance to draft him.
What I also found interesting is that Hasheem says that he scrimmaged with the UConn Soccer team over a couple summers. I wish I got to see a 7 foot 3 soccer player in my lifetime. Hasheem would take up a lot of room in goal.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/05312009/sports/knicks/walsh_has_eye_on_big_man_thabeet_171765.htm
Thought it was interesting...no comment on whether that's good or bad for Hasheem.
As I'm reading into it, it appears as if the Knicks would need Thabeet to fall to 3rd in the draft if they were to have a chance to draft him.
What I also found interesting is that Hasheem says that he scrimmaged with the UConn Soccer team over a couple summers. I wish I got to see a 7 foot 3 soccer player in my lifetime. Hasheem would take up a lot of room in goal.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/05312009/sports/knicks/walsh_has_eye_on_big_man_thabeet_171765.htm
Wow 25 innings?
7 hours and 3 minutes. The longest baseball game in NCAA History was played yesterday. Texas beat Boston College 3-2.
A Texas reliever, Austin Wood, threw 12 1/3 innings of no hit ball before giving up a single. He pitched 13 innings in total.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=4217730
A Texas reliever, Austin Wood, threw 12 1/3 innings of no hit ball before giving up a single. He pitched 13 innings in total.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=4217730
Saturday, May 30, 2009
GO Magic
I don't like Kobe Bryant or the Lakers. I hope the Magic win.
I have always thought that having a dominant center is the most beneficial position to have a dominant player on a basketball team. I think Dwight Howard has helped prove me right...so far. I hope he and his teammates can beat Kobe and the Lakers. Dwight Howard was awesome in this series...as was Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu. I didn't watch every minute of every game, but I saw a little bit of all of the games. I thought it was a really good series.
I will say that when the Bulls won all those Championships...they did so without a big name center. The Bulls centers were not dominant, you can win without a dominant center. If I was building my team around one player, I'd want that one player to be a dominant center (Both Offensively and Defensively).
The Spurs had Tim Duncan and David Robinson for a while...That turned out pretty well.
I have always thought that having a dominant center is the most beneficial position to have a dominant player on a basketball team. I think Dwight Howard has helped prove me right...so far. I hope he and his teammates can beat Kobe and the Lakers. Dwight Howard was awesome in this series...as was Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu. I didn't watch every minute of every game, but I saw a little bit of all of the games. I thought it was a really good series.
I will say that when the Bulls won all those Championships...they did so without a big name center. The Bulls centers were not dominant, you can win without a dominant center. If I was building my team around one player, I'd want that one player to be a dominant center (Both Offensively and Defensively).
The Spurs had Tim Duncan and David Robinson for a while...That turned out pretty well.
I'm so bad with what day it is.
This is completely random. I am so bad at remembering dates. I usually have no idea what day it is or what the date is. It gets even worse during the summer. I'm also very good at remembering history and birthdays etc. You can probably tell that I have a very good memory. For example, while I may know that my mom's birthday is August 1st, I guarantee you that on August 1st I won't know that it's August 1st. (That's what happened last summer...and probably the summer before too) It's sad because I love My Mom.
One year I think it took me 5 minutes after I got up to remember that it was October 28th and my birthday.
Speaking of Birthday's it was really weird that for a group project last year, My friend Drina, myself and my friend Meghan Nanfeldt had our birthday's all in a row. What are the chances of working in randomly assigned groups and having 3 of the 5 people with their birthday's 3 days in a row...and have those birthday's while that class is in session. Drina's is October 27th, I'm the 28th, Meghan is October 29th.
I hope no one complains that I forget that it's an anniversary or birthday. Chances are that I didn't forget it, rather it's just that I have no idea what the day is.
I'm looking at a calender right now. I'm guessing that's what inspired this post. This tennis player who added me on facebook, Kelley LoRusso (it's a free plug for her) is about to be flipped into history. (Yes I have the official Division of Athletics Calendar)
Another random thing is that I've never noticed so many young people at the grocery store on a Saturday night. There seemed to be so many of us at the Rindge, New Hampshire Market Basket. To be fair though, the Market Basket might actually be the local hangout.
In doing more research on Franklin Pierce, I found out I lied. On the road to campus there are actually two things...A Sugar House and a place for Archery. I said there was nothing. That would be wrong literally, but not figuratively.
One year I think it took me 5 minutes after I got up to remember that it was October 28th and my birthday.
Speaking of Birthday's it was really weird that for a group project last year, My friend Drina, myself and my friend Meghan Nanfeldt had our birthday's all in a row. What are the chances of working in randomly assigned groups and having 3 of the 5 people with their birthday's 3 days in a row...and have those birthday's while that class is in session. Drina's is October 27th, I'm the 28th, Meghan is October 29th.
I hope no one complains that I forget that it's an anniversary or birthday. Chances are that I didn't forget it, rather it's just that I have no idea what the day is.
I'm looking at a calender right now. I'm guessing that's what inspired this post. This tennis player who added me on facebook, Kelley LoRusso (it's a free plug for her) is about to be flipped into history. (Yes I have the official Division of Athletics Calendar)
Another random thing is that I've never noticed so many young people at the grocery store on a Saturday night. There seemed to be so many of us at the Rindge, New Hampshire Market Basket. To be fair though, the Market Basket might actually be the local hangout.
In doing more research on Franklin Pierce, I found out I lied. On the road to campus there are actually two things...A Sugar House and a place for Archery. I said there was nothing. That would be wrong literally, but not figuratively.
Another Soccer player
Lauren Ebert and Courtney Lazos (a transfer from Alabama [she's a New Jersey Native] to UConn for Women's Soccer) play for the New Jersey Wildcats along with Cory Bildstein.
There are only a few players on the UConn roster that I have no information on for summer league teams.
I wonder if any of the Men's players play in a summer league...starting my research and so far I have found nothing. I don't remember reading anything about them playing in summer leagues but we'll see if I find anything. I know that players on the baseball and women's soccer teams do compete in summer leagues.
Former UConn soccer Standout Ryan Cordiero has an assist in 4 games for the Real Maryland Monarchs.
O'Brian White is wearing number 17 for Toronto. He has not played in a game yet. He hurt his knee at UConn in the fall.
Julius James has gotten in two games for 33 minutes for the Houston Dynamo.
Isn't it a little weird that Renee Montgomery will have gotten on TV more often when she was in college then she is in the Pro's. Only one of the Minnesota Lynx games is on National TV. 6 will get on Fox Sports Net.
In what I think was an exhibition game;
Charde Houston had 10 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists
Renee Montgomery had 7 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.
Ketia Swanier played in two pre-season games for the Connecticut Sun in the WNBA. In those two games she has played 24 minutes, with 2 rebounds, a steal, 4 assists and 1 point.
Swanier has since been released by the Sun and according to a blog I read she is hoping to play in Europe.
Deon Anderson had 2 rushes for 3 yards for the Cowboys and 2 catches for 7 Yards and a touchdown...He's a fullback who started for the Cowboys. As a Cowboys fan I thought he was effective on Special Teams and as a blocker. He's been my favorite Fullback since Richie Anderson.
Larry Taylor had 6 punt returns for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns in one playoff game for the Montreal Alouettes in 2008.
Emeka Okafor averaged 13.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. Also averaged 1.7 blocks per game. He started 81 of 82 games for the Bobcats.
Ray Allen averaged 18.2 points in the regular season along with 3.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game for the Celtics.
Ben Gordon averaged 20.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game with the Bulls in the regular season.
I'll continue with more UConn NBA players later.
I figure if I research former soccer players, maybe I should also research stuff on former Basketball players. I mean it is Storrs, Connecticut. Soccer is really big there but we are often the Capital of Men's and Women's Basketball of the entire world.
There are only a few players on the UConn roster that I have no information on for summer league teams.
I wonder if any of the Men's players play in a summer league...starting my research and so far I have found nothing. I don't remember reading anything about them playing in summer leagues but we'll see if I find anything. I know that players on the baseball and women's soccer teams do compete in summer leagues.
Former UConn soccer Standout Ryan Cordiero has an assist in 4 games for the Real Maryland Monarchs.
O'Brian White is wearing number 17 for Toronto. He has not played in a game yet. He hurt his knee at UConn in the fall.
Julius James has gotten in two games for 33 minutes for the Houston Dynamo.
Isn't it a little weird that Renee Montgomery will have gotten on TV more often when she was in college then she is in the Pro's. Only one of the Minnesota Lynx games is on National TV. 6 will get on Fox Sports Net.
In what I think was an exhibition game;
Charde Houston had 10 points, 1 rebound and 2 assists
Renee Montgomery had 7 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.
Ketia Swanier played in two pre-season games for the Connecticut Sun in the WNBA. In those two games she has played 24 minutes, with 2 rebounds, a steal, 4 assists and 1 point.
Swanier has since been released by the Sun and according to a blog I read she is hoping to play in Europe.
Deon Anderson had 2 rushes for 3 yards for the Cowboys and 2 catches for 7 Yards and a touchdown...He's a fullback who started for the Cowboys. As a Cowboys fan I thought he was effective on Special Teams and as a blocker. He's been my favorite Fullback since Richie Anderson.
Larry Taylor had 6 punt returns for 203 yards and 2 touchdowns in one playoff game for the Montreal Alouettes in 2008.
Emeka Okafor averaged 13.2 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. Also averaged 1.7 blocks per game. He started 81 of 82 games for the Bobcats.
Ray Allen averaged 18.2 points in the regular season along with 3.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game for the Celtics.
Ben Gordon averaged 20.7 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game with the Bulls in the regular season.
I'll continue with more UConn NBA players later.
I figure if I research former soccer players, maybe I should also research stuff on former Basketball players. I mean it is Storrs, Connecticut. Soccer is really big there but we are often the Capital of Men's and Women's Basketball of the entire world.
UConn Men's and Women's Soccer Attendance Figures
UConn Men's Soccer was 2nd in Average Attendance in the country and had the most overall fans. (Count me as 1 of those 3,011 average fans)
1. UC Santa Barbara 3,444
2. UConn 3,011
3. Cal Poly 2,839
Big East School's South Florida (15th), Louisville (19th) and St. Johns (21st) were in the top 25 in Average Men's Attendance
UConn was first in Overall Attendance
1. UConn 39,138
2. UC Santa Barbara 37,886
3. Maryland 35,631
2008 Women's Soccer attendance figures has UConn 8th in the country in average attendance.
NCAA Women’s Soccer Average Home Attendance
1. Portland, 3,608
2. Texas A&M, 3,148
3. North Carolina, 2,567 (The North Carolina Women Average More than the Men...UNC Men average 1,639)
4. Notre Dame, 1,938 (Notre Dame Women Averaged More than the Men...Notre Dame Men averaged 959)
5. BYU, 1,634
6. Georgia, 1,502
7. Santa Clara, 1,467
8. Connecticut, 1,346 (Of that I count for 1 out of those 1,346 as does; Ryan Grace, Matt Huang, Meghan Nanfeldt and Wintana Araya. We would be the regulars at games.)
9. Florida, 1,299
10. LSU, 1,294
Besides Notre Dame and UConn, Louisville (20th, 1,003 average fans) was the only other Women's Big East team in the top 25 for average attendance.
1. UC Santa Barbara 3,444
2. UConn 3,011
3. Cal Poly 2,839
Big East School's South Florida (15th), Louisville (19th) and St. Johns (21st) were in the top 25 in Average Men's Attendance
UConn was first in Overall Attendance
1. UConn 39,138
2. UC Santa Barbara 37,886
3. Maryland 35,631
2008 Women's Soccer attendance figures has UConn 8th in the country in average attendance.
NCAA Women’s Soccer Average Home Attendance
1. Portland, 3,608
2. Texas A&M, 3,148
3. North Carolina, 2,567 (The North Carolina Women Average More than the Men...UNC Men average 1,639)
4. Notre Dame, 1,938 (Notre Dame Women Averaged More than the Men...Notre Dame Men averaged 959)
5. BYU, 1,634
6. Georgia, 1,502
7. Santa Clara, 1,467
8. Connecticut, 1,346 (Of that I count for 1 out of those 1,346 as does; Ryan Grace, Matt Huang, Meghan Nanfeldt and Wintana Araya. We would be the regulars at games.)
9. Florida, 1,299
10. LSU, 1,294
Besides Notre Dame and UConn, Louisville (20th, 1,003 average fans) was the only other Women's Big East team in the top 25 for average attendance.
You know I love Rowing
Rowing doesn't really love me...yet...I should probably try and kayak a little on the lake so I can say that I've imitated the one, the only Willis Reed.
I also don't know much about rowing. I know that you don't want wind, that you want to row together and that the coxswain does a lot of important things like steering and motivating. Oh and the seats move.
Anyway here is a good place to read about rowing and see pictures of rowing. It's coverage of the biggest Rowing event, the Dad Vail Regatta. It already happened, almost 3 weeks ago, but if you want to get acclimated to rowing and see the event that Willis Reed trains all year for this is the place to go.
http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/44548637.html
I also don't know much about rowing. I know that you don't want wind, that you want to row together and that the coxswain does a lot of important things like steering and motivating. Oh and the seats move.
Anyway here is a good place to read about rowing and see pictures of rowing. It's coverage of the biggest Rowing event, the Dad Vail Regatta. It already happened, almost 3 weeks ago, but if you want to get acclimated to rowing and see the event that Willis Reed trains all year for this is the place to go.
http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/44548637.html
Friday, May 29, 2009
Just a thought
I think people want to be able to know what everyone is thinking.
Technology has made that possible. With blogs, twitter, facebook etc. nothing is private anymore. Everyone has the ability to speak their mind and anyone has the ability to search and read it.
I don't know if this is a good thing or not. People who post things on the internet need to be careful of what they post and people who read things on the internet need to take what's posted with a grain of salt, and also be prepared to see things that you didn't want to see or want to know.
The Eagles shouldn't have fired their employee for writing something about wanting to keep Brian Dawkins. John Calipari's daughter shouldn't have had her facebook page comments about Pat Forde made into a news story. Those things were meant to be private. Those are things that those two people 20 years ago would have said to their neighbors and friends when they saw them. Now they post it on the internet for their friends to see. With or without facebook, that Eagles employee still would have said that about Brian Dawkins. With Facebook the Eagles can search and read it.
What once used to be private, our thoughts, are no longer really private. Everyone thinks that they are important and everyone loves to talk about themselves. Now with the internet and social networking people are speaking their minds. Unfortunately it comes with consequences. People don't get to put things in context on the internet or in facebook posts. People know too much and have access to too much information about people's private lives.
People need to be smart when it comes to what they write, because people will say things in the heat of the moment and other's will interpret it the wrong way. I also think that there is so responsibility on the searcher's part to understand that if they are searching something that is private, or not intended for their eyes than they will find things that they don't want to know or read. Searchers need to have thick skin and take whatever criticisms are said about them as constructive criticism and not as disrespect.
What used to be saved for home and for friends while you are shooting the breeze is now posted on the internet and awaiting comments. People used to sift through photographs in private with friends. Now that they are digital they post them on the internet. People search them and form impressions of people that they don't know based on them. People obsess over who was in that picture and why were they at that party etc. etc. I think it's best if we get to know people in person before judging them for something that they see or read online. A photograph can be misleading and words can be misinterpreted, especially when read without tone and facial expressions.
Maybe people can argue that this technology is a good thing, maybe we are weeding out a lot of bad people with the ability of googling. It's seems like a bad thing because we are finding out a lot of things that no one had access to not that long ago. Every technology seems to come with it's pluses and minuses. Social Networking's biggest problem could be that now people do know what used to be private information.
Trust me I love social networking, I love being able to keep in touch with people that are far away, I love being able to share my thoughts on twitter and right here on this blog and I love talking sports. However, the people who search things on the internet really need to have tough skin, take things with a grain of salt and respect that what they find might not be meant for their viewing. What you can find easily on the internet now used to only be able to be obtained through stalking, police warrants and sifting through people's homes. Remember that.
FYI...I wouldn't post something if I thought it was questionable. I'm usually pretty good at that. I hope nothing has or does fall through the cracks. I fully understand that what I write could be searched by anyone. I hope I haven't written anything that would get me in trouble. (I think Mel Thomas even sent her book to Geno for him to look over) I continually update every post, to word things differently, proofread it (so I don't look stupid) and take out things that are questionable or shouldn't be posted. I try my best and hopefully that's good enough.
I also don't tend to post anything negative here. I think the only time I remember that is when I spoke about Anderson Varejao and well quite frankly one certain school in the Big East conference who doesn't have a football team. I try to talk about good, interesting or funny stories. Although I completely understand if I'm the only person who finds them funny.
Technology has made that possible. With blogs, twitter, facebook etc. nothing is private anymore. Everyone has the ability to speak their mind and anyone has the ability to search and read it.
I don't know if this is a good thing or not. People who post things on the internet need to be careful of what they post and people who read things on the internet need to take what's posted with a grain of salt, and also be prepared to see things that you didn't want to see or want to know.
The Eagles shouldn't have fired their employee for writing something about wanting to keep Brian Dawkins. John Calipari's daughter shouldn't have had her facebook page comments about Pat Forde made into a news story. Those things were meant to be private. Those are things that those two people 20 years ago would have said to their neighbors and friends when they saw them. Now they post it on the internet for their friends to see. With or without facebook, that Eagles employee still would have said that about Brian Dawkins. With Facebook the Eagles can search and read it.
What once used to be private, our thoughts, are no longer really private. Everyone thinks that they are important and everyone loves to talk about themselves. Now with the internet and social networking people are speaking their minds. Unfortunately it comes with consequences. People don't get to put things in context on the internet or in facebook posts. People know too much and have access to too much information about people's private lives.
People need to be smart when it comes to what they write, because people will say things in the heat of the moment and other's will interpret it the wrong way. I also think that there is so responsibility on the searcher's part to understand that if they are searching something that is private, or not intended for their eyes than they will find things that they don't want to know or read. Searchers need to have thick skin and take whatever criticisms are said about them as constructive criticism and not as disrespect.
What used to be saved for home and for friends while you are shooting the breeze is now posted on the internet and awaiting comments. People used to sift through photographs in private with friends. Now that they are digital they post them on the internet. People search them and form impressions of people that they don't know based on them. People obsess over who was in that picture and why were they at that party etc. etc. I think it's best if we get to know people in person before judging them for something that they see or read online. A photograph can be misleading and words can be misinterpreted, especially when read without tone and facial expressions.
Maybe people can argue that this technology is a good thing, maybe we are weeding out a lot of bad people with the ability of googling. It's seems like a bad thing because we are finding out a lot of things that no one had access to not that long ago. Every technology seems to come with it's pluses and minuses. Social Networking's biggest problem could be that now people do know what used to be private information.
Trust me I love social networking, I love being able to keep in touch with people that are far away, I love being able to share my thoughts on twitter and right here on this blog and I love talking sports. However, the people who search things on the internet really need to have tough skin, take things with a grain of salt and respect that what they find might not be meant for their viewing. What you can find easily on the internet now used to only be able to be obtained through stalking, police warrants and sifting through people's homes. Remember that.
FYI...I wouldn't post something if I thought it was questionable. I'm usually pretty good at that. I hope nothing has or does fall through the cracks. I fully understand that what I write could be searched by anyone. I hope I haven't written anything that would get me in trouble. (I think Mel Thomas even sent her book to Geno for him to look over) I continually update every post, to word things differently, proofread it (so I don't look stupid) and take out things that are questionable or shouldn't be posted. I try my best and hopefully that's good enough.
I also don't tend to post anything negative here. I think the only time I remember that is when I spoke about Anderson Varejao and well quite frankly one certain school in the Big East conference who doesn't have a football team. I try to talk about good, interesting or funny stories. Although I completely understand if I'm the only person who finds them funny.
Red Sox fans are going to like me
As a Mets fan I love Gary Cohen, and I loved Bob Murphy, the current and former voice of the Mets.
What I loved about Murphy was his homerun call. It was so calm compared to every other sportscaster's home-run call...It's a fly ball...deeeeep to centerfield, waaaay back there, it may go, a home run, a home run for Mike Piazza.
More so than any other team, when I hear Jerry Remy I think of Fenway Park and the Boston Red Sox. I think he's the best at baseball when it comes to having his voice associated with a certain team.
What I loved about Murphy was his homerun call. It was so calm compared to every other sportscaster's home-run call...It's a fly ball...deeeeep to centerfield, waaaay back there, it may go, a home run, a home run for Mike Piazza.
More so than any other team, when I hear Jerry Remy I think of Fenway Park and the Boston Red Sox. I think he's the best at baseball when it comes to having his voice associated with a certain team.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Some Stamford Love
I've been reading the Hartford Courant and according to Mike Anthony Craig Austrie has a couple of offers to play in Europe.
The Cape League
Mo Vaughn and Lance Berkman played for Wareham...not the same time but they did play there.
Carlos Pena also played one of his two Cape seasons with Wareham.
In 3 Cape Cod seasons combined between Lance Berkman and Todd Helton managed to hit 1 combined home run.
9 of 10 teams in the Cape League had batting averages around .200 when the documentary I am watching on NESN was filmed.
I found out that there is a wooden bat making place Barnstable...also the home of Willis Reed.
An aluminum bat College game averages 3 1/2 hours
A wood bat Cape Cod game averages 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Pitching apparently rules the Cape Cod league. One Cape Cod General Manager said that college players should knock 150-200 points off there college averages.
The league also uses wooden bats which makes it tougher to hit. That probably has more to do with the lower averages then the pitching does...
I don't like Aluminum Bats...too many cheap hits. Wooden Bats sound good and make the game interesting. Too many cheap hits dilutes the game of baseball. Wooden bats have a smaller sweet spot and it doesn't just jump off the bat if you make contact the way a aluminum bat does. A wooden bat also just feels different than an aluminum bat.
The players often get jobs in the surrounding businesses. Pretty Cool...you have a day job and you play baseball at night. Not bad. Also must be weird looking at these baseball players, sometimes about to go pro in the minor leaguers.
Thurman Munson played in the Cape Cod League.
in 1988 these guys played in the Cape League and what they did for work:
Jeff Bagwell...dishwasher at Friendly's
Frank Thomas...worked at a resort
J.T. Snow
Tim Salmon
Denny Neagle
Mo Vaughn
Other players who have played and where they worked
Barry Zito played...golf course maintenance
Jason Varitek...did Laundry
Mark Kotsay..bagged Peter Gammons groceries at the A and P.
David DeJesus-fish market
Scott Strickland...landscaping
Todd Walker...Golf course
Khalil Greene
Mike Matheny..Law Firm...mowed lawn there
Brian Buchanan
Nomar Garciaparra
Mike MacDougall
Scott Schowenweis.
Darin Erstad
Scott Spiezio
Adam Kennedy
Major Leaguers Adam Kennedy and Darin Erstad both sent signed game used autograph bats to the equipment manager on Falmouth when they met at the Cape Cod League when that worker was battling cancer. He was buried with those bats and his Cape League jersey.
I also read that a game was called as a tie with a runner on third in a decisive game because there wouldn't be enough light to finish the game. That well is pretty sad. It also happened to hurt the team that Willis Reed currently interns for, the Cotuit Kettleers, who also were one of the most important teams in the development of the league. They were the first team to have all college players.
Players put on clinics too. Helps bring in attendance. Cape League develops fans. Kids get to know players through clinics, parents meet players at clinics, develop a personal connection and come back to the game at night.
Everyone who works at games volunteers. They don't make money. It's a $2,000,000 non profit league.
In watching the documentary "Touching The Game, The Story of the Cape Cod League" The Cape Cod League really appears to be a tremendous asset to the game of baseball, college baseball and major league baseball. It gives major league teams a chance to scout talent, a place for good college players to play against each other over the summer and most importantly for the game itself it develops fans and socializes the game to a new generation of people.
Carlos Pena also played one of his two Cape seasons with Wareham.
In 3 Cape Cod seasons combined between Lance Berkman and Todd Helton managed to hit 1 combined home run.
9 of 10 teams in the Cape League had batting averages around .200 when the documentary I am watching on NESN was filmed.
I found out that there is a wooden bat making place Barnstable...also the home of Willis Reed.
An aluminum bat College game averages 3 1/2 hours
A wood bat Cape Cod game averages 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Pitching apparently rules the Cape Cod league. One Cape Cod General Manager said that college players should knock 150-200 points off there college averages.
The league also uses wooden bats which makes it tougher to hit. That probably has more to do with the lower averages then the pitching does...
I don't like Aluminum Bats...too many cheap hits. Wooden Bats sound good and make the game interesting. Too many cheap hits dilutes the game of baseball. Wooden bats have a smaller sweet spot and it doesn't just jump off the bat if you make contact the way a aluminum bat does. A wooden bat also just feels different than an aluminum bat.
The players often get jobs in the surrounding businesses. Pretty Cool...you have a day job and you play baseball at night. Not bad. Also must be weird looking at these baseball players, sometimes about to go pro in the minor leaguers.
Thurman Munson played in the Cape Cod League.
in 1988 these guys played in the Cape League and what they did for work:
Jeff Bagwell...dishwasher at Friendly's
Frank Thomas...worked at a resort
J.T. Snow
Tim Salmon
Denny Neagle
Mo Vaughn
Other players who have played and where they worked
Barry Zito played...golf course maintenance
Jason Varitek...did Laundry
Mark Kotsay..bagged Peter Gammons groceries at the A and P.
David DeJesus-fish market
Scott Strickland...landscaping
Todd Walker...Golf course
Khalil Greene
Mike Matheny..Law Firm...mowed lawn there
Brian Buchanan
Nomar Garciaparra
Mike MacDougall
Scott Schowenweis.
Darin Erstad
Scott Spiezio
Adam Kennedy
Major Leaguers Adam Kennedy and Darin Erstad both sent signed game used autograph bats to the equipment manager on Falmouth when they met at the Cape Cod League when that worker was battling cancer. He was buried with those bats and his Cape League jersey.
I also read that a game was called as a tie with a runner on third in a decisive game because there wouldn't be enough light to finish the game. That well is pretty sad. It also happened to hurt the team that Willis Reed currently interns for, the Cotuit Kettleers, who also were one of the most important teams in the development of the league. They were the first team to have all college players.
Players put on clinics too. Helps bring in attendance. Cape League develops fans. Kids get to know players through clinics, parents meet players at clinics, develop a personal connection and come back to the game at night.
Everyone who works at games volunteers. They don't make money. It's a $2,000,000 non profit league.
In watching the documentary "Touching The Game, The Story of the Cape Cod League" The Cape Cod League really appears to be a tremendous asset to the game of baseball, college baseball and major league baseball. It gives major league teams a chance to scout talent, a place for good college players to play against each other over the summer and most importantly for the game itself it develops fans and socializes the game to a new generation of people.
I let the Mayor of Storrs down.
I hope he forgives me because my aim was on but I wasn't at my computer.
I watched Barcelona vs Manchester United yesterday. I can't say I know a lot about soccer, but I thought Barcelona was really good at passing the ball and keeping possession. I was impressed by their ability to do that.
I watched Barcelona vs Manchester United yesterday. I can't say I know a lot about soccer, but I thought Barcelona was really good at passing the ball and keeping possession. I was impressed by their ability to do that.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Bowl Projections
Someone actually has already wasted their time and energy projecting College Football bowl games in the 2009-2010 season.
Not surprisingly UConn was not picked to go bowling. I know we are good, but no college football guru says so.
I predict that not surprisingly UConn will once again prove college football gurus wrong and get to a bowl game again.
Not surprisingly UConn was not picked to go bowling. I know we are good, but no college football guru says so.
I predict that not surprisingly UConn will once again prove college football gurus wrong and get to a bowl game again.
Just so you know
My favorite NFL team, the Dallas Cowboys has installed a 2100 inch TV screen at their new stadium.
Think about the size of that. You thought 60 inches was big? Try 2100 inches. (160x72 feet) That's a 16 story building...
Everything is bigger in Texas.
Think about the size of that. You thought 60 inches was big? Try 2100 inches. (160x72 feet) That's a 16 story building...
Everything is bigger in Texas.
Dance Off...This is good.
Here is our baseball team at UConn having a dance off with South Florida at the Big East Tournament. Apparently this made PTI but I missed it. I think it's pretty cool. A way to keep both players and fans entertained during the rain.
The first four Huskies are Number 7 Harold Brantley Jr. OF/DH, Number 4 George Springer CF (The Big East Freshman of the year), Number 19 Dan Mahoney P, Number 9 Pierre LePage 2B.
I can't tell who was doing the Chicken Dance...From a distance it looked like either Peter Fatse or John Folino...I'd go with Fatse if I had to but not 100% sure.
The player with the pants and shirt switched around is Doug Elliot...at least he is number 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aazG7dMhE7I
The first four Huskies are Number 7 Harold Brantley Jr. OF/DH, Number 4 George Springer CF (The Big East Freshman of the year), Number 19 Dan Mahoney P, Number 9 Pierre LePage 2B.
I can't tell who was doing the Chicken Dance...From a distance it looked like either Peter Fatse or John Folino...I'd go with Fatse if I had to but not 100% sure.
The player with the pants and shirt switched around is Doug Elliot...at least he is number 8.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aazG7dMhE7I
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Another amazing
Another Amazing NBA game. Go Magic.
Not my Celtics, but Go Magic. I like Dwight Howard and Hedo Turkoglu.
Craig Sager...atleast it's blue. It's a weird blue, but atleast it's blue. The tie is just out there...but by Craig Sager's standards, it's pretty conservative.
Another game that went down to the wire.
Not my Celtics, but Go Magic. I like Dwight Howard and Hedo Turkoglu.
Craig Sager...atleast it's blue. It's a weird blue, but atleast it's blue. The tie is just out there...but by Craig Sager's standards, it's pretty conservative.
Another game that went down to the wire.
The New England Mutiny's support staff.
So the New England Mutiny have a wide array of support staff for their women's soccer team. I sort of laughed when I read what they have.
They have a team acupuncturist. Huh? I don't know how exactly the helps athletic performance but the team has an official acupuncturist. I'd pass on that...but that's just me.
What I am intrigued about is a Mental Conditioning Coach. I've never heard about that before, but I like the idea of having one. So much time is spent on the muscles that throw, run, kick etc. I think the most important one is the one that controls all of those motions...and emotions and thoughts. There should be almost no thinking when it comes to in-game situations. Most things should be done on instinct and reactions. There is no time for decision making when a ball is in front of you and nothing is between you and the goal. It's a reaction...an instinct. You kick it and you score.
Confidence is also a major issue that I think some athletes struggle with. Many athletes don't lack confidence at all. They exude it everywhere, on and off the field. Others don't exude confidence or don't have enough of it. They become too passive, don't take advantage of opportunities because they are afraid to make a mistake. Great teams aren't afraid to make mistakes for two reasons. First of all they don't think they will make a mistake, second of all if they did, either they or someone else on the team would make up for it. Some athletes also need to be re-assured that they are good. Some people are tough, some are really nice, some are serious, some are loose and everyone is different. Some people need confidence given to them in order to do well, others need to be challenged and yelled at. Everyone is different and having a coach that can get everyone's mind in the right place to succeed is very important. I would say there isn't enough mental conditioning in sports.
Kristine Lilly, the great soccer player, would listen to tapes before games that would re-assure her. They would give her confidence. They would tell her she was good, that she could make a difference.
The 1999 U.S. Women's soccer World Cup Champion team would show highlight videos to players of all the amazing things that they did do to give them confidence.
Even Mia Hamm, the greatest women's soccer player ever, struggled with her confidence a lot. She was afraid to take a penalty kick in the 1999 Women's World Cup. She tried to give up her penalty kick to another player...Keep in mind she has more goals in International Play than any other soccer player, male or female, in the history of soccer. If Mia Hamm struggled with confidence, chances are a lot of other athletes have too.
I think a Mental Conditioning coach is a great coach to have. The Mutiny are lucky to have one and I hope they utilize their coach a lot.
They also have a massage therapist. I'd utilize that coach everyday. As a matter of fact every second I'm not on my feet.
They have a team acupuncturist. Huh? I don't know how exactly the helps athletic performance but the team has an official acupuncturist. I'd pass on that...but that's just me.
What I am intrigued about is a Mental Conditioning Coach. I've never heard about that before, but I like the idea of having one. So much time is spent on the muscles that throw, run, kick etc. I think the most important one is the one that controls all of those motions...and emotions and thoughts. There should be almost no thinking when it comes to in-game situations. Most things should be done on instinct and reactions. There is no time for decision making when a ball is in front of you and nothing is between you and the goal. It's a reaction...an instinct. You kick it and you score.
Confidence is also a major issue that I think some athletes struggle with. Many athletes don't lack confidence at all. They exude it everywhere, on and off the field. Others don't exude confidence or don't have enough of it. They become too passive, don't take advantage of opportunities because they are afraid to make a mistake. Great teams aren't afraid to make mistakes for two reasons. First of all they don't think they will make a mistake, second of all if they did, either they or someone else on the team would make up for it. Some athletes also need to be re-assured that they are good. Some people are tough, some are really nice, some are serious, some are loose and everyone is different. Some people need confidence given to them in order to do well, others need to be challenged and yelled at. Everyone is different and having a coach that can get everyone's mind in the right place to succeed is very important. I would say there isn't enough mental conditioning in sports.
Kristine Lilly, the great soccer player, would listen to tapes before games that would re-assure her. They would give her confidence. They would tell her she was good, that she could make a difference.
The 1999 U.S. Women's soccer World Cup Champion team would show highlight videos to players of all the amazing things that they did do to give them confidence.
Even Mia Hamm, the greatest women's soccer player ever, struggled with her confidence a lot. She was afraid to take a penalty kick in the 1999 Women's World Cup. She tried to give up her penalty kick to another player...Keep in mind she has more goals in International Play than any other soccer player, male or female, in the history of soccer. If Mia Hamm struggled with confidence, chances are a lot of other athletes have too.
I think a Mental Conditioning coach is a great coach to have. The Mutiny are lucky to have one and I hope they utilize their coach a lot.
They also have a massage therapist. I'd utilize that coach everyday. As a matter of fact every second I'm not on my feet.
I promise I will get back to sports
Ok I wrote enough about me for awhile. I don't like writing about me, because quite frankly I'm pretty sure that you're not interested in reading about it. Then again it's my blog and it's supposed to be about me some of the time.
It's also the summer...when UConn isn't playing. It can get tough writing in the summer when all you can do is re-live what happened a long time ago or speculate on the future...which I try not to do when talking about UConn...because I know coaches hate it. Our teams need to take every game one game at a time. Boring, but I agree that it's true. Reading the newspapers, and listening to the news can really effect one important muscle in sports, that would be the brain. It's also why I generally only say good things about athletes. Hopefully that will strengthen one of their most important muscles, their brain.
I also can't write about things that happened around campus...because I'm not on campus and no one else really is. I can't write about running into Maya Moore, having Hasheem Thabeet wave at me, seeing Erin Clark ride a scooter inside the natatorium lobby, watching Melissa Busque and Jessica Shufelt take painfully long to pick a seat in psychology class, where I spotted Jonathan Mandeldove, telling someone on men's track when their next home meet is etc. I also can't write about a Tree Hill Raven's game, or Ryan Grace's games because there aren't any. No stories from Sam either.
Atleast I can talk about Craig Sager's suits.
Don't worry 95% of the time it will be me talking about sports. I wasn't sure about that when I first started doing this. Then I realized that I talk about sports a lot...and really it's the only thing besides myself that I can talk about. That might be a little extreme, but it's somewhere close to the truth.
It's also the summer...when UConn isn't playing. It can get tough writing in the summer when all you can do is re-live what happened a long time ago or speculate on the future...which I try not to do when talking about UConn...because I know coaches hate it. Our teams need to take every game one game at a time. Boring, but I agree that it's true. Reading the newspapers, and listening to the news can really effect one important muscle in sports, that would be the brain. It's also why I generally only say good things about athletes. Hopefully that will strengthen one of their most important muscles, their brain.
I also can't write about things that happened around campus...because I'm not on campus and no one else really is. I can't write about running into Maya Moore, having Hasheem Thabeet wave at me, seeing Erin Clark ride a scooter inside the natatorium lobby, watching Melissa Busque and Jessica Shufelt take painfully long to pick a seat in psychology class, where I spotted Jonathan Mandeldove, telling someone on men's track when their next home meet is etc. I also can't write about a Tree Hill Raven's game, or Ryan Grace's games because there aren't any. No stories from Sam either.
Atleast I can talk about Craig Sager's suits.
Don't worry 95% of the time it will be me talking about sports. I wasn't sure about that when I first started doing this. Then I realized that I talk about sports a lot...and really it's the only thing besides myself that I can talk about. That might be a little extreme, but it's somewhere close to the truth.
Living on your own...and mostly about me cooking...and my favorite foods. I love anything that invovles Favorite Foods.
Since it's not quite the summer yet I am taking care of myself. Both my parents are still working. My mom is a teacher so she'll be done in about 4 weeks. My dad is self-employed so he's a bit more flexible. Not flexible enough to be up here all the time though...especially since he's probably in surgery right now to repair his leg and his torn quadriceps muscle. (I'm rubbing my knee just thinking about what happened)
Also really you can skip forward...I'm warning you this is mostly about what foods I eat. It's really not interesting, but go ahead and read if you want. I don't know why anyone would care about what I eat. However, I always seem to read about that whenever they are listed about someone else in the media guide.
Life is interesting all by myself I must say. Although it will prepare me well for my Hilltop Apartment. I do my own laundry...which I've actually done for a while now. The cooking for myself is new. Since I have some free-time before I start working I watched a little TV today. I was watching the food network for a bit. I decided that they were doing way too much in terms of preparing their meals. I'm a pretty basic eater. I'm learning to stay away from junk food...yet my mom is hoping that I finish up some of the ice-cream that's been sitting in the freezer for a while. I'm a picky eater, and plain eater. I don't like too many spices. Not into "hot foods." I've been to a Chinese/Japanese restaurant a couple times in my life. Each time I ordered Fried Chicken. I can do grilled chicken on the grill. I'm great with microwaveable foods. So good that if I do have to cook I try to make a lot and then just put the rest in the fridge as left-overs to be heated up. I basically like all kinds of chicken.
I also love Filet Mignon/steak...but that tends to be expensive so that's for special occasions...speaking of that I love Irish Mashed Potatoes and my mom's amazing dinner rolls. If I got to choose my last meal those 3 things would be on it. Along with it I'd add Fried Chicken and my birthday cake with a side of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. My birthday cake is called "Sour Milk Cake" because it's made from real sour milk. I mean real...smelly, chunky milk. It's so good. It's my favorite food. It also comes with the best icing ever. Once I asked my mom just to make the icing for me to eat. It taste's really good, I just wouldn't recommend doing that. I had too much but somehow didn't throw up.
I've loved green beans ever since I saw how they were processed in Immokalee, Florida. We got a 22 pound box of green beans...(22-26 pound box...not sure which...it was a lot of free green beans)and we had green beans with every meal for about a week...even after we split the box with family members. I learned to like green beans. I love peas too...that's something that Thomas Jefferson and I have in common.
Right now I am trying to snack and have lunch with Tuna Fish sandwiches and eat either grilled chicken or a ham/cheese/lettuce/tomato/onion roll sandwich for dinner. I make two cans of tuna fish at once and hope it lasts a while. I also love peanut butter jelly...both the song and the food. I was made fun of at work at RBS Greenwich Capital last year because I would bring a bag lunch with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to work every day.
I also have a bag of frozen fried chicken, and hot dogs and hamburgers too. I love those foods and will probably have that on occasion. Breakfast right now is waffles and syrup...soon that will change to Wheaties/Cheerios and bananas because that's what I have. I also love Pancakes, French Toast and French Toast Sticks. You know where I will be standing if I ever to go South for breakfast. I also try to have scrambled eggs since they are full of protein.
Speaking of South Dining hall, which is the best...I really only go to a couple places there. I literally skip over the International Line everytime. If there is a long line at the one in the back right for dinner I skip that. I'll go straight for the hot dogs and hamburgers instead. For breakfast I never go in the omelet line. I can't wait that long to eat. I am so hungry around breakfast time. To me breakfast food requires something with syrup, or donuts/bagels/toast or cereal. Random but I said it.
Another good snack that I like are apples with peanut butter.
I also have to travel to the grocery store and buy my own food. I don't mind that actually. I tend to buy healthy foods, I just can't stay away from the unhealthy foods if my mom or dad bought them and they are just lying around the house.
I love grapes and carrots and dip. Carrots also help me sustain my good vision. I also love bread and butter. I love chips, especially sour cream and onion flavors. I love Sun-Chips too.
I like my mom's home-made tacos...kind of funny that we have soft shelled tacos since I am not of hispanic ancestry. I can't make that though. I also love Pasta, especially pasta with pesto.
I can't make the pesto sauce though...I will learn how to make pasta...which really isn't complicated. I just have to take the time to do it. Generally when I am hungry I want to eat. I don't want to spend an hour preparing the food. I just want to eat it. Therefore Presentation of the food also means absolutely nothing to me...unless of course I was entertaining someone. They should be able to tell what they are eating.
Garlic and Tomato pizza is really good too. I have to order that.
We have a fire pit where I can make smores in the summer. I love chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter m and m's, any mint candies, fruit slices...etc...but don't like nuts. Once again, I'm cutting these foods out though. They do no good. I have to try and think of food as away to fuel me and not as a way of making me happy.
I am not much of a fish eater...except tuna fish...which is chicken of the sea...and Mahi Mahi which I have if I'm in Hawaii.
As for drinks...I love Chocolate Milk, Skim Milk, Gatorade and Water. I also enjoy Orange Juice...without the pulp...(I love Tropicana) and Guava Juice. I never ever drink coffee. I hate coffee...but spilled coffee is what did lead me to change my seat in psychology and meet the greatest rower ever, Willis Reed.
In closing the scariest part about me going to the super market is what I am thinking about. Basically If I go down an aisle I will think about a UConn athlete if I see their favorite food.
Also really you can skip forward...I'm warning you this is mostly about what foods I eat. It's really not interesting, but go ahead and read if you want. I don't know why anyone would care about what I eat. However, I always seem to read about that whenever they are listed about someone else in the media guide.
Life is interesting all by myself I must say. Although it will prepare me well for my Hilltop Apartment. I do my own laundry...which I've actually done for a while now. The cooking for myself is new. Since I have some free-time before I start working I watched a little TV today. I was watching the food network for a bit. I decided that they were doing way too much in terms of preparing their meals. I'm a pretty basic eater. I'm learning to stay away from junk food...yet my mom is hoping that I finish up some of the ice-cream that's been sitting in the freezer for a while. I'm a picky eater, and plain eater. I don't like too many spices. Not into "hot foods." I've been to a Chinese/Japanese restaurant a couple times in my life. Each time I ordered Fried Chicken. I can do grilled chicken on the grill. I'm great with microwaveable foods. So good that if I do have to cook I try to make a lot and then just put the rest in the fridge as left-overs to be heated up. I basically like all kinds of chicken.
I also love Filet Mignon/steak...but that tends to be expensive so that's for special occasions...speaking of that I love Irish Mashed Potatoes and my mom's amazing dinner rolls. If I got to choose my last meal those 3 things would be on it. Along with it I'd add Fried Chicken and my birthday cake with a side of Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream. My birthday cake is called "Sour Milk Cake" because it's made from real sour milk. I mean real...smelly, chunky milk. It's so good. It's my favorite food. It also comes with the best icing ever. Once I asked my mom just to make the icing for me to eat. It taste's really good, I just wouldn't recommend doing that. I had too much but somehow didn't throw up.
I've loved green beans ever since I saw how they were processed in Immokalee, Florida. We got a 22 pound box of green beans...(22-26 pound box...not sure which...it was a lot of free green beans)and we had green beans with every meal for about a week...even after we split the box with family members. I learned to like green beans. I love peas too...that's something that Thomas Jefferson and I have in common.
Right now I am trying to snack and have lunch with Tuna Fish sandwiches and eat either grilled chicken or a ham/cheese/lettuce/tomato/onion roll sandwich for dinner. I make two cans of tuna fish at once and hope it lasts a while. I also love peanut butter jelly...both the song and the food. I was made fun of at work at RBS Greenwich Capital last year because I would bring a bag lunch with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich to work every day.
I also have a bag of frozen fried chicken, and hot dogs and hamburgers too. I love those foods and will probably have that on occasion. Breakfast right now is waffles and syrup...soon that will change to Wheaties/Cheerios and bananas because that's what I have. I also love Pancakes, French Toast and French Toast Sticks. You know where I will be standing if I ever to go South for breakfast. I also try to have scrambled eggs since they are full of protein.
Speaking of South Dining hall, which is the best...I really only go to a couple places there. I literally skip over the International Line everytime. If there is a long line at the one in the back right for dinner I skip that. I'll go straight for the hot dogs and hamburgers instead. For breakfast I never go in the omelet line. I can't wait that long to eat. I am so hungry around breakfast time. To me breakfast food requires something with syrup, or donuts/bagels/toast or cereal. Random but I said it.
Another good snack that I like are apples with peanut butter.
I also have to travel to the grocery store and buy my own food. I don't mind that actually. I tend to buy healthy foods, I just can't stay away from the unhealthy foods if my mom or dad bought them and they are just lying around the house.
I love grapes and carrots and dip. Carrots also help me sustain my good vision. I also love bread and butter. I love chips, especially sour cream and onion flavors. I love Sun-Chips too.
I like my mom's home-made tacos...kind of funny that we have soft shelled tacos since I am not of hispanic ancestry. I can't make that though. I also love Pasta, especially pasta with pesto.
I can't make the pesto sauce though...I will learn how to make pasta...which really isn't complicated. I just have to take the time to do it. Generally when I am hungry I want to eat. I don't want to spend an hour preparing the food. I just want to eat it. Therefore Presentation of the food also means absolutely nothing to me...unless of course I was entertaining someone. They should be able to tell what they are eating.
Garlic and Tomato pizza is really good too. I have to order that.
We have a fire pit where I can make smores in the summer. I love chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter m and m's, any mint candies, fruit slices...etc...but don't like nuts. Once again, I'm cutting these foods out though. They do no good. I have to try and think of food as away to fuel me and not as a way of making me happy.
I am not much of a fish eater...except tuna fish...which is chicken of the sea...and Mahi Mahi which I have if I'm in Hawaii.
As for drinks...I love Chocolate Milk, Skim Milk, Gatorade and Water. I also enjoy Orange Juice...without the pulp...(I love Tropicana) and Guava Juice. I never ever drink coffee. I hate coffee...but spilled coffee is what did lead me to change my seat in psychology and meet the greatest rower ever, Willis Reed.
In closing the scariest part about me going to the super market is what I am thinking about. Basically If I go down an aisle I will think about a UConn athlete if I see their favorite food.
So where am I?
I am at my Lake House right now in Ashburnham, Mass. Technically I live on a pond. I've never heard of a "Pond House" before. It also doesn't sound good like that. Who would want to go to a Pond House? The only difference between a Lake and a Pond is the depth of the water. The average depth is supposed to be greater than 6.6 feet year round...In the winter the water is lowered to prevent the ice from doing havoc on the docks and walls around the lake. My guess is that my body of water is just below that 6.6 feet of average depth. In one spot it hits about 20 feet deep. I think the Pond is about 60 acres. There are docks and motor boats. No Jet Ski's are allowed. That's a rule I don't like. There are a good amount of motor boats. There is a speed limit of 40 mph and no horsepower limit. Most people use it for water tubing and water skiing. I would think it gets boring going around in circles for awhile. We don't have a motor boat. We have two kayaks and a pedal boat. There are three good size islands that you can walk on. I'd say one of the islands is about 50 yards long. Most important though is that it's quiet and private. There is no public access so there is no competing for space on the water. Either you own it or you don't.
There is plenty of fishing to do. There are a lot of bass. I've caught a cat-fish before too. There are other kinds but I am not familiar with them.
July 4th is interesting. We just got this place a year and a half ago and we've experienced one July 4th. There were lot of fireworks, but they weren't organized. People just lit them whenever they wanted.
In the winter there is a lot of ice fishing and some people building skating rinks for ice hockey.
There is plenty to keep busy with here. I like that.
It's also really unique. I live on a one lane dirt road. When two cars are on the road, you pull over to let one pass. The mail man doesn't stop by, you go to the post office. This is also why we don't have any mail sent to our lake house. Deliveries of appliances are always interesting. Large Trucks and Truck drivers probably dread reading any address on my street.
But it's nice. I love being on a one lane dirt road because it's really different. It's unique and it keeps things quiet.
My house is a great place to read and write...and get away from the world. After I traveled to the Final Four in 2008 I came back to my lake house so I could catch up on school work.
Being in the middle of nowhere also makes it difficult to find. I've gotten lost getting back here before. Not lately though. Still we over-run one of the streets we need to take every once in a while because everything blends in in the woods. Countless souls have gotten lost trying to get to this place. If I invite you and you make it without taking a wrong turn you deserve a gold star...which we might have considering my mom is a kindergarten teacher.
Being in the middle of nowhere also means you don't meet many new people, which means life can get boring after awhile...especially since I'm of college age and looking to meet new people.
But again there is plenty to keep me busy. I can play my sports video games (which I don't spend forever on, I am not a "video-gamer" but I play on occasion...Most sports fans enjoy Madden and NCAA Football...I'm enjoying FIFA 2009 right now...and I'm the Arsenal and we usually win), watch sports, play pool, ping pong, horse shoes, swim (yeah right), fish, play cards, watch movies, read, write, split wood (which I enjoy as a workout), lift weights, hike, run, cycle...yeah there is plenty to do.
My game room also has tons of posters, newspaper clippings and magazine covers/pictures covering the walls. Many of that is UConn stuff. Every poster from this year and most from last year are up. Also gameday posters for basketball. All the schedule magnets too. Before I met my friend Meghan Nanfeldt I said to myself...I recognize that name...that would be because she was hanging up on my game room wall. I don't really have many autographs there...those are at home. Some of my UConn ones are.
I also collect license plates. I have those in the garage. I have ten states so far (Alaska, Connecticut, Maine, South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, Virginia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Also have one from Venezuela.) I bought 3 of them, the rest came from family.
Ashburnham doesn't have a lot going on downtown. I haven't noticed a bar. It is home to Cushing Academy, a famous prep school. Two UConn Men's Ice Hockey players and Baseball pitcher Dan Mahoney went there. There are a couple of churches downtown. A pizza place, antiques store and hardware store. There is a small marketplace too. We generally travel up the road to Rindge, New Hampshire to the Market Basket, Wal Mart and Hannaford up there to buy food. It's about a 15-20 minute drive to those places...maybe 5-10 to downtown Ashburnham...not a huge difference and there is a bigger selection and no sales tax in New Hampshire.
That 15-20 minute drive is also a main part of my bike ride. When I cycle I generally go down route 119 for awhile. I go past Mount Watatic, a Mountain with nice hiking trails, and on a clear day views of Boston in the far distance and Mount Monadnock just 20 or so miles away. I go into New Hampshire and take a right on to a road that leads to the Cathedral of the Pines. It is a non denominational religious area dedicated to veterans. Every President since Harry Truman has donated a rock to the altar up front. Every state also has sent a rock and rocks from famous battlefields are also a part of the altar. It recently went through a transformation in landscaping after the ice storm did damage to a lot of trees. I went today and it still looks beautiful and peaceful.
http://www.cathedralofthepines.org/
After I pass the Cathedral I take another right into a residential neighborhood. I go down a hill that I usually get up to about 38 mph going down. I go to a certain point and turn back. Every time I go on the route I go up to the Cathedral Parking lot and salute the flag as a tribute to our veterans. Then I return home.
I'm working on a running route and I think I found one. If I don't run around my street I will run up and down Mt. Watatic.
I am staying at my Lake House so I can work in the Franklin Pierce athletic department. I am really looking forward to helping the Ravens. They are a Division II school. Interestingly enough I read today that their women's basketball team was the first team in the State of New Hampshire to play in a NCAA Championship game (Division II). Unfortunately they lost. Their Women's Soccer team also had a really great record this past year. I heard that their baseball team and men's soccer team are also pretty good. There head men's soccer coach recently left the program to take an assistant coaching position at Boston College.
Also Franklin Pierce College is really in the middle of nowhere. People say that about UConn. Franklin Pierce is much further out in the middle of nowhere. I think that's a plus. Most others don't...I fell in love with UConn because the two lane country roads that I had to drive on to get to campus. It reminded me an awful lot of New Hampshire and Lake Winnipesaukee. I didn't see a bar near Franklin Pierce. (I'm not much of a drinker but I know many others are) Nothing is within walking distance that I know of. There is a great pizza place called Pizza Haven down the road. There is also a Taco Bell and Kentucky Fried Chicken 5 minutes away near the same grocery stores and Wal-Mart that I use.
There is plenty of fishing to do. There are a lot of bass. I've caught a cat-fish before too. There are other kinds but I am not familiar with them.
July 4th is interesting. We just got this place a year and a half ago and we've experienced one July 4th. There were lot of fireworks, but they weren't organized. People just lit them whenever they wanted.
In the winter there is a lot of ice fishing and some people building skating rinks for ice hockey.
There is plenty to keep busy with here. I like that.
It's also really unique. I live on a one lane dirt road. When two cars are on the road, you pull over to let one pass. The mail man doesn't stop by, you go to the post office. This is also why we don't have any mail sent to our lake house. Deliveries of appliances are always interesting. Large Trucks and Truck drivers probably dread reading any address on my street.
But it's nice. I love being on a one lane dirt road because it's really different. It's unique and it keeps things quiet.
My house is a great place to read and write...and get away from the world. After I traveled to the Final Four in 2008 I came back to my lake house so I could catch up on school work.
Being in the middle of nowhere also makes it difficult to find. I've gotten lost getting back here before. Not lately though. Still we over-run one of the streets we need to take every once in a while because everything blends in in the woods. Countless souls have gotten lost trying to get to this place. If I invite you and you make it without taking a wrong turn you deserve a gold star...which we might have considering my mom is a kindergarten teacher.
Being in the middle of nowhere also means you don't meet many new people, which means life can get boring after awhile...especially since I'm of college age and looking to meet new people.
But again there is plenty to keep me busy. I can play my sports video games (which I don't spend forever on, I am not a "video-gamer" but I play on occasion...Most sports fans enjoy Madden and NCAA Football...I'm enjoying FIFA 2009 right now...and I'm the Arsenal and we usually win), watch sports, play pool, ping pong, horse shoes, swim (yeah right), fish, play cards, watch movies, read, write, split wood (which I enjoy as a workout), lift weights, hike, run, cycle...yeah there is plenty to do.
My game room also has tons of posters, newspaper clippings and magazine covers/pictures covering the walls. Many of that is UConn stuff. Every poster from this year and most from last year are up. Also gameday posters for basketball. All the schedule magnets too. Before I met my friend Meghan Nanfeldt I said to myself...I recognize that name...that would be because she was hanging up on my game room wall. I don't really have many autographs there...those are at home. Some of my UConn ones are.
I also collect license plates. I have those in the garage. I have ten states so far (Alaska, Connecticut, Maine, South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida, Virginia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Also have one from Venezuela.) I bought 3 of them, the rest came from family.
Ashburnham doesn't have a lot going on downtown. I haven't noticed a bar. It is home to Cushing Academy, a famous prep school. Two UConn Men's Ice Hockey players and Baseball pitcher Dan Mahoney went there. There are a couple of churches downtown. A pizza place, antiques store and hardware store. There is a small marketplace too. We generally travel up the road to Rindge, New Hampshire to the Market Basket, Wal Mart and Hannaford up there to buy food. It's about a 15-20 minute drive to those places...maybe 5-10 to downtown Ashburnham...not a huge difference and there is a bigger selection and no sales tax in New Hampshire.
That 15-20 minute drive is also a main part of my bike ride. When I cycle I generally go down route 119 for awhile. I go past Mount Watatic, a Mountain with nice hiking trails, and on a clear day views of Boston in the far distance and Mount Monadnock just 20 or so miles away. I go into New Hampshire and take a right on to a road that leads to the Cathedral of the Pines. It is a non denominational religious area dedicated to veterans. Every President since Harry Truman has donated a rock to the altar up front. Every state also has sent a rock and rocks from famous battlefields are also a part of the altar. It recently went through a transformation in landscaping after the ice storm did damage to a lot of trees. I went today and it still looks beautiful and peaceful.
http://www.cathedralofthepines.org/
After I pass the Cathedral I take another right into a residential neighborhood. I go down a hill that I usually get up to about 38 mph going down. I go to a certain point and turn back. Every time I go on the route I go up to the Cathedral Parking lot and salute the flag as a tribute to our veterans. Then I return home.
I'm working on a running route and I think I found one. If I don't run around my street I will run up and down Mt. Watatic.
I am staying at my Lake House so I can work in the Franklin Pierce athletic department. I am really looking forward to helping the Ravens. They are a Division II school. Interestingly enough I read today that their women's basketball team was the first team in the State of New Hampshire to play in a NCAA Championship game (Division II). Unfortunately they lost. Their Women's Soccer team also had a really great record this past year. I heard that their baseball team and men's soccer team are also pretty good. There head men's soccer coach recently left the program to take an assistant coaching position at Boston College.
Also Franklin Pierce College is really in the middle of nowhere. People say that about UConn. Franklin Pierce is much further out in the middle of nowhere. I think that's a plus. Most others don't...I fell in love with UConn because the two lane country roads that I had to drive on to get to campus. It reminded me an awful lot of New Hampshire and Lake Winnipesaukee. I didn't see a bar near Franklin Pierce. (I'm not much of a drinker but I know many others are) Nothing is within walking distance that I know of. There is a great pizza place called Pizza Haven down the road. There is also a Taco Bell and Kentucky Fried Chicken 5 minutes away near the same grocery stores and Wal-Mart that I use.
Monday, May 25, 2009
What a play
There was an amazing play in the college Lacrosse Championship game between Cornell and Syracuse. Syracuse took the ball away from Cornell really late in the game. A Syracuse player made a sick pass to a Syracuse player who made a nice catch, who somehow passed it again, had it deflect off of a Cornell Defenders stick and into a Syracuse stick. The Syracuse player scored to tie the game with 4 seconds left. Syracuse went on to win the championship in overtime for the second year in a row.
Northwestern won the girls lacrosse championship for the 5th year in a row.
Also I saw a bit of the NASCAR race today and I couldn't help but notice that they stopped the event at 3pm to have a moment of silence for the military on Memorial Day. I thought it was a great gesture...They lined the cars up on the front straight away during the middle of the race and had the drivers shut off their engines in memory of those who have fought for us. How many other sports would stop in the middle of the event to do that?
On this day I also want to thank all of the people who have served and are serving our country in the armed forces. I come from a military family and have had relatives serve in World War II, Korea, Desert Storm and The War in Iraq.
I also want to thank two athletes who are involved with UConn who have spent time in the military. Those two would be Zak Penwell who is a strength and conditioning coach and former football player and also Mikey Sevick of the rowing team.
Northwestern won the girls lacrosse championship for the 5th year in a row.
Also I saw a bit of the NASCAR race today and I couldn't help but notice that they stopped the event at 3pm to have a moment of silence for the military on Memorial Day. I thought it was a great gesture...They lined the cars up on the front straight away during the middle of the race and had the drivers shut off their engines in memory of those who have fought for us. How many other sports would stop in the middle of the event to do that?
On this day I also want to thank all of the people who have served and are serving our country in the armed forces. I come from a military family and have had relatives serve in World War II, Korea, Desert Storm and The War in Iraq.
I also want to thank two athletes who are involved with UConn who have spent time in the military. Those two would be Zak Penwell who is a strength and conditioning coach and former football player and also Mikey Sevick of the rowing team.
More Craig Sager links
Because you can't talk about Meghan Cunningham all the time.
Here are more Craig Sager links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcx_KHdrJks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDB4hnFjJ-I&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umkNpF49Ww4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdsEekRE4pA
Here are more Craig Sager links
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcx_KHdrJks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NDB4hnFjJ-I&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umkNpF49Ww4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdsEekRE4pA
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Anderson play the game
I can't stand watching Anderson Varejao. This guy does not stop complaining about fouls. He's always talking to the referees and going "And One." I can not stand watching him. Stop complaining and play.
I wish he would get posterized by Mugsy Bogues.
I wish he would get posterized by Mugsy Bogues.
History Will Be Made On Memorial Day.
Willis Reed has left me speechless. Too bad that doesn't mean that I can't write. According to her facebook status she will be attending the Rockies/Dodgers game. This is the first baseball field not named Fenway Park that Willis will be at.
Coors field will probably paint the seat that she sits in the color of a Craig Sager jacket and put a plaque in to commemorate such a historic event.
She should get a standing ovation in the first day of Sports Law for branching out and attending a baseball game somewhere else.
This will go down in the history books forever. Memorial Day 2009. Don't forget it and I hope kids studying for a history test in 20 years will sweat it.
Coors field will probably paint the seat that she sits in the color of a Craig Sager jacket and put a plaque in to commemorate such a historic event.
She should get a standing ovation in the first day of Sports Law for branching out and attending a baseball game somewhere else.
This will go down in the history books forever. Memorial Day 2009. Don't forget it and I hope kids studying for a history test in 20 years will sweat it.
Is there a Dress Like Craig Sager party?
Craig Sager is a NBA court-side reporter. I think that there has to be a theme party called "dress like Craig Sager party." Quite simply it is not possible to dress any LOUDER than he does. He's about as loud as standing next to a jet engine.
This is a great video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltpqPd3t5V0
This is a great video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltpqPd3t5V0
More people in the W-League
I was looking at some W-League stats and saw that there was a team from Rochester. I knew UConn had a couple of players from that area so I checked in to see if anyone from UConn played there and sure enough three do. Jessica Dulski, Shannon Algoe and Jessica Shufelt all play on the Rochester Ravens of the W-League. They will all be sophomores next year.
Cory Bildstein plays for the New Jersey Wildcats.
Elise Fugowski and Brittany Taylor's team won 6-0. They beat the team with that player that I think plays in an unsportsmanlike manner. They are my two newest favorite people ever.
Cory Bildstein plays for the New Jersey Wildcats.
Elise Fugowski and Brittany Taylor's team won 6-0. They beat the team with that player that I think plays in an unsportsmanlike manner. They are my two newest favorite people ever.
My dad has something in common with Jerome Dyson?
Yeah, My dad has something in common with Jerome Dyson, Caroline Doty, Kalana Greene, Brittany Taylor, O'Brian White, Karl Schilling, Lauren Sparks, Sam Kelley, Meghan Nanfeldt, Ashley O'Brien, Brittany Hunter, A.J. Price, Jessica Diakun, Gina Heiderman (wow old school volleyball) and Darius Butler.
Unlike them my dad can't catch a ball, but like them he has,or had a serious knee injury. As a matter of fact my dad's happened about 2 hours ago as he and I were hiking Mt. Watatic. At least my dad saw the top. As he was coming down he slipped and fell and right away he felt it. Not sure what exactly he did yet. He said it felt similar to when he tore his quad. I knew right away that it was not good. I've seen enough knee injuries at UConn to know that this was going to be one long way back. It was. Thankfully there was a group of 3 people from Manchester, CT, Kara, Josh and Dave who helped get my dad down. Josh, Dave and I worked together to get my dad slowly down the mountain. We needed all 3 of us to manuever around the rocks, through some mud and one small...but with a hurt knee...tough water hazard to get over. We found a stick along the way to serve as a crutch. It also happened to be about 10 days before my dad's 60th birthday. (yes he became a father when he was 39) My Uncle fell and hurt himself really really badly on his 60th birthday. If I get that old I will do nothing a month before and month after my 60th birthday.
These next couple of weeks could be interesting as I will most likely be helping him out. I feel really bad for him and anyone else who goes through a knee injury. These injuries suck. This is the second knee injury for him and I remember how limited he was with his first one. Trust me, your memorial day weekend will not be as bad as his...and my dad's will probably not be as bad as someone else.
At least my dad has been able to see all these people on the UConn posters in my game room. It makes him feel better that he has some company.
Unlike them my dad can't catch a ball, but like them he has,or had a serious knee injury. As a matter of fact my dad's happened about 2 hours ago as he and I were hiking Mt. Watatic. At least my dad saw the top. As he was coming down he slipped and fell and right away he felt it. Not sure what exactly he did yet. He said it felt similar to when he tore his quad. I knew right away that it was not good. I've seen enough knee injuries at UConn to know that this was going to be one long way back. It was. Thankfully there was a group of 3 people from Manchester, CT, Kara, Josh and Dave who helped get my dad down. Josh, Dave and I worked together to get my dad slowly down the mountain. We needed all 3 of us to manuever around the rocks, through some mud and one small...but with a hurt knee...tough water hazard to get over. We found a stick along the way to serve as a crutch. It also happened to be about 10 days before my dad's 60th birthday. (yes he became a father when he was 39) My Uncle fell and hurt himself really really badly on his 60th birthday. If I get that old I will do nothing a month before and month after my 60th birthday.
These next couple of weeks could be interesting as I will most likely be helping him out. I feel really bad for him and anyone else who goes through a knee injury. These injuries suck. This is the second knee injury for him and I remember how limited he was with his first one. Trust me, your memorial day weekend will not be as bad as his...and my dad's will probably not be as bad as someone else.
At least my dad has been able to see all these people on the UConn posters in my game room. It makes him feel better that he has some company.
Trip to Super Market
I went to the Market Basket this morning to get some food for my summer stay in Ashburnham. I saw a Wheaties box with Willis Reed on it so I had to buy it.
I will write down
In my schedule I will write down that June 27th and June 28th are booked for soccer games. The 27th is the Mutiny hosting the Soccerplus CT Reds. The 28th is a trip back to Little Portugal to see my least favorite athlete compete on the road against UConn Summer League Part Dos.
Apparently the Mutiny are a really big deal just so you know. I will have to find out for myself.
Apparently the Mutiny are a really big deal just so you know. I will have to find out for myself.
Championship game
A team that goes under the radar at UConn is the baseball team. They will be in the CHAMPIONSHIP for the Big East Tournament tomorrow at 11am. The team beat South Florida today 10-8 with the help of two Mike Olt homerus.
UConn will hope to pick up a Big East Championship tomorrow against Louisville. It is the programs 2nd visit to the Big East Championship game in 3 years. Not bad. You should come and watch them next spring!!!.
UConn will hope to pick up a Big East Championship tomorrow against Louisville. It is the programs 2nd visit to the Big East Championship game in 3 years. Not bad. You should come and watch them next spring!!!.
Saturday, May 23, 2009
A visit to Little Portugal.
For those of you who don't know Little Portugal (my nickname) is a neighborhood in Ludlow, Massachusetts, right by Lusitano Stadium on Winsor Street. It's also the home to the Western Massachusetts Lady Pioneers women's soccer team...aka UConn Summer League Part Dos. (Portugal is next to Spain, and I don't know Portuguese, so Spanish will have to do.)
I met up with my friend Meghan Nanfeldt to watch the game. I also want to thank Shauna Musser for the ticket to the game. The stadium really looks as if it's in another country. It is a distinct venue, with white cement walls around the complex. It really feels as if you are in Portugal. (Maybe the team could add to the games by adding some Portuguese culture at the games...just an idea) There was a marketing department. A girl got to kick at half-time to try and win a savings bond, people also threw out mini soccer balls to try and win a free Pioneers T-Shirt.
They had music and a P.A. announcer. I didn't see a facilities crew. They also looked to have had a pretty good size food court. Bigger than the one at Morrone. There were cement stands behind the team benches and aluminum ones on the other side of field. I ended up parking at a church parking lot, but the streets were also lined with cars. It looked like players had a parking lot inside the stadium walls.
I'd also say that for me this stadium came out from the middle of nowhere. I traveled through the forest to get there, but I think it's cool that a good soccer stadium just ended up in Ludlow, Mass. The Pioneers also wear red and they have a mascot that is a raccoon, who walked around the stadium at the end. There was a team program and a real, printed ticket. I also heard that the team also practices about two times a week.
Kacey Richards played the game in a place I am not accustom to seeing her and that is in the backline. It's highly highly doubtful that she will be playing there at UConn, but it's the summer league and you can mix things up.
Courtney Wilkinson Maitland played well on defense. She had a nice pass that would have gotten things going up-field if not for a young players misfortune. Some of the players on the Lady Pioneers are great high school players who get some experience playing with and against college competition. The high school player didn't seem to expect the pass to come but Wilkinson Maitland displayed some good vision. Too bad it didn't work out. I thought she played really well for UConn last year. I am not as good at evaluating defenders as I am scorers (because I understand scoring better than the nuances of defense and midfield play...we'll get there) but I seem to remember her making some key stops.
Both Richards and Wilkinson-Maitland played the entire game.
Brie Gray...as I will call her now and Amanda Schwartz also played the entire game for the Pioneers. I am sure they had no idea that the guy that knew their favorite foods would also drive 90 minutes...each way...to watch them play. I hope they would assume that if I know their favorite foods, that I would also know when they play. I also really wanted to get a chance to watch both of them play. Both of their positions have a lot of depth at UConn so they will both be competing hard for playing time.
Mandy Schwartz...which is what she was introduced as...so I will call her that...same for Brie...and no longer Brianna...is one of those people with an extremely outgoing personality....Let's get this straight....I Barely...hardly know her....she just knows that I know whatever was listed in the media guide about her...and she thought it was cool. I get the impression that Mandy is one of those people that you would want to have on a long cross country drive because she would make life interesting and a lot of fun (As would Katy Ryan)...I am really glad I got to see her play. Of all of the people I wanted to see play, she was the one I wanted to see play the most.
Brie Gray is very talented, she was ranked as a top 150 recruit. I was also glad to get to see her play and I hope to see more of both her and Mandy next year. She just missed scoring a goal.
Sam Kelley got in the game. She is really smart, she had a 4.0 fall semester. She's someone you should go and root for. She obviously takes her academics really seriously, but on top of that she is playing off of a really tough injury. I heard that she really tore up her knee before her freshman season. You can't help but want to see someone who had to go through a tough injury succeed. I am glad I saw her play. She was effective in the time she played at the end of the game. I remember her making some good stops while the opposing team was trying to advance the ball and trying to cross the ball.
Ashley O'Brien doesn't get enough praise from me. I won't go into the details too much...but I really really think that she deserves some award for her being a two sport athlete and being one tough person. I mean really really really really really really really really tough. That's a lot of really's. People who pay to watch her play will see that she's trying extra hard to get you your money's worth.
Shauna is the most important player of all them. She had the complimentary tickets as a player on the team (and Meghan convinced her to give them to me...so Meghan needs a thanking too) that I got to use for the game. I didn't get to see Shauna play much at Storrs, and part of that is do to some injuries that she had, but I am really glad to have gotten to see her play over the summer. She happens to be another UConn player that I ended up telling what her favorite food was. She also had a great number. I don't know what she is officially but I liked that her shorts said 14 and jersey said 24, so I'll call her 1424, which sounds like a flight number. She had a couple of nice passes and she put the boogies on one person.
I really enjoyed going to the game. It's nice being able to watch some UConn players compete and be able to sit back and relax and enjoy the company of a friend. I had no worries at this game. No tests to study for. I could just relax and enjoy this event and not worry about anything. I also loved the fact that I got to root for some good people, and got to see some of the players who are leaving UConn play a little bit before they move on with their lives.
I heard that both of the players who have graduated UConn (Musser and O'Brien) will be continuing on to get their graduate degrees.
I know it's probably hard for those 7 people to believe that I actually enjoyed traveling 3 hours total, to watch 2 hours of soccer, but I really did. This was a highlight of Memorial Day weekend for me. (sounds pathetic, but why lie?) A big part of that is because I have a really cool friend named Meghan Nanfeldt who I got to hang out with. The lord knows that in Ashburnham I might run into 3 people a week if I am lucky. I enjoyed traveling on back roads at night because I got to learn a little bit about their league, learn a little bit about soccer, hang out and support some good people.
When you're as obsessed with sports as I am you would understand. It's hard to get me to drive 90 minutes for a movie, or a mall, or a theme park, but if sports are involved, it's not much of a problem.
I met up with my friend Meghan Nanfeldt to watch the game. I also want to thank Shauna Musser for the ticket to the game. The stadium really looks as if it's in another country. It is a distinct venue, with white cement walls around the complex. It really feels as if you are in Portugal. (Maybe the team could add to the games by adding some Portuguese culture at the games...just an idea) There was a marketing department. A girl got to kick at half-time to try and win a savings bond, people also threw out mini soccer balls to try and win a free Pioneers T-Shirt.
They had music and a P.A. announcer. I didn't see a facilities crew. They also looked to have had a pretty good size food court. Bigger than the one at Morrone. There were cement stands behind the team benches and aluminum ones on the other side of field. I ended up parking at a church parking lot, but the streets were also lined with cars. It looked like players had a parking lot inside the stadium walls.
I'd also say that for me this stadium came out from the middle of nowhere. I traveled through the forest to get there, but I think it's cool that a good soccer stadium just ended up in Ludlow, Mass. The Pioneers also wear red and they have a mascot that is a raccoon, who walked around the stadium at the end. There was a team program and a real, printed ticket. I also heard that the team also practices about two times a week.
Kacey Richards played the game in a place I am not accustom to seeing her and that is in the backline. It's highly highly doubtful that she will be playing there at UConn, but it's the summer league and you can mix things up.
Courtney Wilkinson Maitland played well on defense. She had a nice pass that would have gotten things going up-field if not for a young players misfortune. Some of the players on the Lady Pioneers are great high school players who get some experience playing with and against college competition. The high school player didn't seem to expect the pass to come but Wilkinson Maitland displayed some good vision. Too bad it didn't work out. I thought she played really well for UConn last year. I am not as good at evaluating defenders as I am scorers (because I understand scoring better than the nuances of defense and midfield play...we'll get there) but I seem to remember her making some key stops.
Both Richards and Wilkinson-Maitland played the entire game.
Brie Gray...as I will call her now and Amanda Schwartz also played the entire game for the Pioneers. I am sure they had no idea that the guy that knew their favorite foods would also drive 90 minutes...each way...to watch them play. I hope they would assume that if I know their favorite foods, that I would also know when they play. I also really wanted to get a chance to watch both of them play. Both of their positions have a lot of depth at UConn so they will both be competing hard for playing time.
Mandy Schwartz...which is what she was introduced as...so I will call her that...same for Brie...and no longer Brianna...is one of those people with an extremely outgoing personality....Let's get this straight....I Barely...hardly know her....she just knows that I know whatever was listed in the media guide about her...and she thought it was cool. I get the impression that Mandy is one of those people that you would want to have on a long cross country drive because she would make life interesting and a lot of fun (As would Katy Ryan)...I am really glad I got to see her play. Of all of the people I wanted to see play, she was the one I wanted to see play the most.
Brie Gray is very talented, she was ranked as a top 150 recruit. I was also glad to get to see her play and I hope to see more of both her and Mandy next year. She just missed scoring a goal.
Sam Kelley got in the game. She is really smart, she had a 4.0 fall semester. She's someone you should go and root for. She obviously takes her academics really seriously, but on top of that she is playing off of a really tough injury. I heard that she really tore up her knee before her freshman season. You can't help but want to see someone who had to go through a tough injury succeed. I am glad I saw her play. She was effective in the time she played at the end of the game. I remember her making some good stops while the opposing team was trying to advance the ball and trying to cross the ball.
Ashley O'Brien doesn't get enough praise from me. I won't go into the details too much...but I really really think that she deserves some award for her being a two sport athlete and being one tough person. I mean really really really really really really really really tough. That's a lot of really's. People who pay to watch her play will see that she's trying extra hard to get you your money's worth.
Shauna is the most important player of all them. She had the complimentary tickets as a player on the team (and Meghan convinced her to give them to me...so Meghan needs a thanking too) that I got to use for the game. I didn't get to see Shauna play much at Storrs, and part of that is do to some injuries that she had, but I am really glad to have gotten to see her play over the summer. She happens to be another UConn player that I ended up telling what her favorite food was. She also had a great number. I don't know what she is officially but I liked that her shorts said 14 and jersey said 24, so I'll call her 1424, which sounds like a flight number. She had a couple of nice passes and she put the boogies on one person.
I really enjoyed going to the game. It's nice being able to watch some UConn players compete and be able to sit back and relax and enjoy the company of a friend. I had no worries at this game. No tests to study for. I could just relax and enjoy this event and not worry about anything. I also loved the fact that I got to root for some good people, and got to see some of the players who are leaving UConn play a little bit before they move on with their lives.
I heard that both of the players who have graduated UConn (Musser and O'Brien) will be continuing on to get their graduate degrees.
I know it's probably hard for those 7 people to believe that I actually enjoyed traveling 3 hours total, to watch 2 hours of soccer, but I really did. This was a highlight of Memorial Day weekend for me. (sounds pathetic, but why lie?) A big part of that is because I have a really cool friend named Meghan Nanfeldt who I got to hang out with. The lord knows that in Ashburnham I might run into 3 people a week if I am lucky. I enjoyed traveling on back roads at night because I got to learn a little bit about their league, learn a little bit about soccer, hang out and support some good people.
When you're as obsessed with sports as I am you would understand. It's hard to get me to drive 90 minutes for a movie, or a mall, or a theme park, but if sports are involved, it's not much of a problem.
Friday, May 22, 2009
Hedo
I never thought that much of Hedo Turkoglu. Probably because I remember him on the Kings with Webber and Bibby. He didn't stick out on that team. Turkoglu has certainly gotten my attention as a big game clutch player.
Winning both games on the road? Yikes for the Cavs.
But wait The Cavaliers have Lebron James.
Is that the shot over Ehlo of Lebron James career? It didn't clinch a series, but it certainly kept the Cavaliers alive in this series.
Another amazing NBA playoff game.
Winning both games on the road? Yikes for the Cavs.
But wait The Cavaliers have Lebron James.
Is that the shot over Ehlo of Lebron James career? It didn't clinch a series, but it certainly kept the Cavaliers alive in this series.
Another amazing NBA playoff game.
Soccer Games
The Soccerplus CT Reds beat the New England Mutiny 1-0 even though the Mutiny out-shot them 29-3. On three different occasions Mutiny players kicked one off the post.
In the big picture this game means nothing because the Mutiny will have at-least one more chance in regular season play to beat them and then they could face each other in the playoffs.
Last year the Mutiny lost to the Reds in the regular season, but beat them when it counted in the playoffs.
The other Big UConn team, the Western Mass Pioneers have a game tomorrow at home in Ludlow, MA.
In the big picture this game means nothing because the Mutiny will have at-least one more chance in regular season play to beat them and then they could face each other in the playoffs.
Last year the Mutiny lost to the Reds in the regular season, but beat them when it counted in the playoffs.
The other Big UConn team, the Western Mass Pioneers have a game tomorrow at home in Ludlow, MA.
Still going
I have to be really excited about our UConn baseball team. They don't get anywhere near the support from students that they should. Several players usually get drafted in the MLB draft. We are also really young and we have an extremely bright future. LePage, Olt and Springer will all be around next year and depending on the draft two more years.
They won today 4-2 over South Florida and they are still going in Florida. They are now 35 and 23. Make sure you come out and support the team next spring and enjoy watching the play of the likes of George Springer. He and several other Huskies will also be playing in the Cape Cod league and New England College Baseball league. If you are in Cape Cod or are around a NECBL game stop by, enjoy America's past-time, and relax. Many major leagues have come up through the Cape Cod League.
http://www.capecodbaseball.org/
http://www.necbl.com/
They won today 4-2 over South Florida and they are still going in Florida. They are now 35 and 23. Make sure you come out and support the team next spring and enjoy watching the play of the likes of George Springer. He and several other Huskies will also be playing in the Cape Cod league and New England College Baseball league. If you are in Cape Cod or are around a NECBL game stop by, enjoy America's past-time, and relax. Many major leagues have come up through the Cape Cod League.
http://www.capecodbaseball.org/
http://www.necbl.com/
Happy Birthday
Happy Birthday to Greg Mihailides.
For his birthday I am going to proclaim that today he is on Meghan Cunningham's level.
I am sure he doesn't think he's worthy, but he's just too humble.
On the serious side, Greg M does a lot of work behind the scenes for women's basketball as one of their team managers. If you are fan of the team you should also thank him and the teams support staff along with the players for helping to deliver a 6th Women's Basketball Championship to Storrs, Connecticut.
For his birthday I am going to proclaim that today he is on Meghan Cunningham's level.
I am sure he doesn't think he's worthy, but he's just too humble.
On the serious side, Greg M does a lot of work behind the scenes for women's basketball as one of their team managers. If you are fan of the team you should also thank him and the teams support staff along with the players for helping to deliver a 6th Women's Basketball Championship to Storrs, Connecticut.
The Mayor of Storrs
Here is a prediction: Ryan Marciel Grace, the Mayor of Storrs, will be the next Ahmad Rashad.
huh
I never write about the NHL...ever. Maybe once before...and I will give the NHL credit for their playing outdoors. I think that's innovative and really cool. Those were good events.
I realize that fighting is a part of hockey but on the Sportscenter Highlight with Barry Melrose the two things that I remember are fights. Not great play, but fights. They were proud that a finesse goal scorer tried to get in on a fight. It was good that he threw some punches...I'm not exactly sure if this is the best image of the game to leave in people's minds. Everyone loves to watch a fight, so long as they or some one they care about are not in it. However, I doubt people are going to get into a hockey game because of just a fight. The NHL and it's media parters have to highlight great play more.
I realize that fighting is a part of hockey but on the Sportscenter Highlight with Barry Melrose the two things that I remember are fights. Not great play, but fights. They were proud that a finesse goal scorer tried to get in on a fight. It was good that he threw some punches...I'm not exactly sure if this is the best image of the game to leave in people's minds. Everyone loves to watch a fight, so long as they or some one they care about are not in it. However, I doubt people are going to get into a hockey game because of just a fight. The NHL and it's media parters have to highlight great play more.
Nuggets Lakers
I can't stand the Lakers, go Nuggets. I loved it when Chauncey Billups threw it off of Kobe's back on an inbounds play and then scored. Carmelo Anthony was pretty good last night too. Anytime the Lakers lose is a good thing. The Nuggets also hit free throws when they needed to and the Lakers did not. Missed Free Throws always kill teams. Once again this was another good NBA playoff game that went down to the wire and was interesting.
I'm glad I wrote a lot yesterday because today I am probably not going to write much as I am packing and leaving for my Lake House today.
I'm glad I wrote a lot yesterday because today I am probably not going to write much as I am packing and leaving for my Lake House today.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
I'm a fan of
Hasheem Thabeet suggested that I become a fan of Hasheem Thabeet on facebook. He's a great person, who went to UConn, so I of course will be rooting for him in the NBA. especially since he arrived in 2006, the same year that I did.
I thought of
Stephanie Labbe and I will forever be linked by bacon. Yes Bacon, not soccer, but bacon. It's a long story that I'll tell you later if you want. Ask me and I will.
Anyway I was reminded of her when I saw a commercial for Beggin Strips. Sounds weird but true. Well I am weird so you probably believe that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug_iluxQ1IQ&feature=related
Anyway I was reminded of her when I saw a commercial for Beggin Strips. Sounds weird but true. Well I am weird so you probably believe that.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ug_iluxQ1IQ&feature=related
EWW
I hated having to take the SAT. Not that it was hard but just that it was so long and such a big deal. It wasn't just a regular test, it was THEE test. I have just begun to look into the G.R.E. for grad school. Worrying about that is a great way to spoil a good summer.
By the way I hate those boring, I mean so boring articles that you have to read and analyze. It's usually about the psychological significance of a 1300 A.D. Southern German sculpture on the life of Trudy's, 2nd cousin's-brother's-friend's-mother's- grandmother's-pool boy's- doctor's-auto mechanic's-regular customer-son's-best friend's-father's-mother's-4th cousin's-divorced 2nd cousin's-grandmother.
I think they find the most boring, useless articles ever written. So boring that they have no place in books. Rather than put them to waste they use them on tests.
I hope they never use something that I write here. Based on my description of what they include I wouldn't be surprised if they did use some of my writing.
By the way I hate those boring, I mean so boring articles that you have to read and analyze. It's usually about the psychological significance of a 1300 A.D. Southern German sculpture on the life of Trudy's, 2nd cousin's-brother's-friend's-mother's- grandmother's-pool boy's- doctor's-auto mechanic's-regular customer-son's-best friend's-father's-mother's-4th cousin's-divorced 2nd cousin's-grandmother.
I think they find the most boring, useless articles ever written. So boring that they have no place in books. Rather than put them to waste they use them on tests.
I hope they never use something that I write here. Based on my description of what they include I wouldn't be surprised if they did use some of my writing.
Big Weekend for motor sports
Just so you are aware this weekend is also a huge weekend for motor sports. Both the Indianapolis 500 and the Coca Cola 600 will be taking place this weekend. Two huge events.
My Afternoon
Today I also mowed the lawn, went for at least a 3-4 mile run and biked 22 miles. Afterwards I took my first (REALLY COLD WATER) bath because I was well really sore after also running and biking yesterday too. The running I've been doing for a while but the cycling is getting back into my routine. My leg muscles were just in shock and just so sore.
I love the feeling, but I thought that an ice bath would be beneficial.
I hate cold weather and cold water. It took me forever to get into this water. I put my lower legs in first by slightly kneeling down. Then I got braver and kneeled all the way down. By this point I was laughing at myself, I think I used laughing to cope with the fact that I was freezing. I also hit my head against the wall to try and deflect the cold feeling I felt in my legs. Finally I got acclimated and sat all the way in...but man it took awhile. If it works, I'll have to do it again.
I am becoming even healthier this summer. I am trying to stretch even more than in years past. I'm also working hard to cut out junk food and I continue to work out like before. People don't realize, especially athletes, how many calories they burn when they are competing and when they are young. As you get older I know you have to combine healthy eating with exercise to be healthy. I'm in good shape but I need to do this for my own health. If I don't have good habits now, I'll die earlier than I should in the future. God forbid me eating an extra cookie now will cost me from seeing UConn Women's Soccer beating the crap out of St. Johns 80 years from now. I hope I live just long enough to see that happen one last time before I die.
No doubt that Ohio State video that Dr. Fink showed us inspired me to say that.
I love the feeling, but I thought that an ice bath would be beneficial.
I hate cold weather and cold water. It took me forever to get into this water. I put my lower legs in first by slightly kneeling down. Then I got braver and kneeled all the way down. By this point I was laughing at myself, I think I used laughing to cope with the fact that I was freezing. I also hit my head against the wall to try and deflect the cold feeling I felt in my legs. Finally I got acclimated and sat all the way in...but man it took awhile. If it works, I'll have to do it again.
I am becoming even healthier this summer. I am trying to stretch even more than in years past. I'm also working hard to cut out junk food and I continue to work out like before. People don't realize, especially athletes, how many calories they burn when they are competing and when they are young. As you get older I know you have to combine healthy eating with exercise to be healthy. I'm in good shape but I need to do this for my own health. If I don't have good habits now, I'll die earlier than I should in the future. God forbid me eating an extra cookie now will cost me from seeing UConn Women's Soccer beating the crap out of St. Johns 80 years from now. I hope I live just long enough to see that happen one last time before I die.
No doubt that Ohio State video that Dr. Fink showed us inspired me to say that.
Making people feel famous
One of my neighbors asked me to stop by before I leave for the summer for my lake house today. I did so right before I went on my run. He wanted to know about my new major and career aspirations in Sports Management.
Somehow I brought up Meghan Cunningham being a two sport athlete and Cory Bildstein's kick against Yale.
I'm making them famous again.
I don't know how I got to that, I think it had came up because we were talking about women in sports.
That subject often comes up when you go to the best Women's College Basketball School in the country.
Somehow I brought up Meghan Cunningham being a two sport athlete and Cory Bildstein's kick against Yale.
I'm making them famous again.
I don't know how I got to that, I think it had came up because we were talking about women in sports.
That subject often comes up when you go to the best Women's College Basketball School in the country.
Correction
http://www.abc40tv.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=3770007&h1=New%20England%20Mutiny%20Open%20Season%20With%20Win&vt1=v&at1=Sport&d1=76567&LaunchPageAdTag=Sport&activePane=info&rnd=37139471
Earlier I wrote about Erin Clark making a sick play. I saw this video and it says that Clark kicked it off of the defender and into the goal...I thought she kicked it off her right foot, into her left foot which then caused it to go into the goal and fake out everyone else...no wonder I couldn't kick it off of my right foot and on to my left foot and have it go anywhere accurately...although it's not like I play much soccer.
I still think that that goal is pretty cool, it just not as sick as I thought it was at first. Kicking it off of the defender and into the goal is more luck then skill.
Don't get me wrong though, scoring 3 goals, scoring a hat trick is not luck, that's skill and that's worth mentioning again. Erin Clark scored a hat trick last game and that's impressive and she did that because she's really really really really good at soccer and not because she is lucky.
If you think I am spending my summer trying to find videos of Erin Clark scoring soccer goals then you'd be right...
Just kidding.
Since 1pm I've gone on a 3 or 4 mile run, 22 mile bike ride and mowed the lawn. I also watched some law and order. I keep busy.
Actually I just check the team website occasionally and they tend to post videos of the team. The New England Mutiny were just named the ABC-40 team of the week.
http://www.abc40tv.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=3777529&h1=Team%20of%20the%20Week%20-%20New%20England%20Mutiny&vt1=v&at1=Sport&d1=160200&LaunchPageAdTag=Sport&activePane=info&rnd=25782091
The media really pay attention to the team and make the team important. They seem to take video's of all their home games. They don't do that for UConn and UConn has been to 8 final fours. I don't know where ABC 40 or TV-22 come from...my guess is Springfield but they are doing live highlights of the team. They are doing a pretty good job. It's got to be cool for the players too. They play in front of passionate fans and they get some good air-time on local news sports-casts. By the way if you didn't see the video, the stands looked filled at the game.
Here is the New England Mutiny website.
http://www.mutinysoccer.com/senior-team
My friend Brian and I are probably going to watch CT Soccer Plus at the Mutiny in June.
Earlier I wrote about Erin Clark making a sick play. I saw this video and it says that Clark kicked it off of the defender and into the goal...I thought she kicked it off her right foot, into her left foot which then caused it to go into the goal and fake out everyone else...no wonder I couldn't kick it off of my right foot and on to my left foot and have it go anywhere accurately...although it's not like I play much soccer.
I still think that that goal is pretty cool, it just not as sick as I thought it was at first. Kicking it off of the defender and into the goal is more luck then skill.
Don't get me wrong though, scoring 3 goals, scoring a hat trick is not luck, that's skill and that's worth mentioning again. Erin Clark scored a hat trick last game and that's impressive and she did that because she's really really really really good at soccer and not because she is lucky.
If you think I am spending my summer trying to find videos of Erin Clark scoring soccer goals then you'd be right...
Just kidding.
Since 1pm I've gone on a 3 or 4 mile run, 22 mile bike ride and mowed the lawn. I also watched some law and order. I keep busy.
Actually I just check the team website occasionally and they tend to post videos of the team. The New England Mutiny were just named the ABC-40 team of the week.
http://www.abc40tv.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=3777529&h1=Team%20of%20the%20Week%20-%20New%20England%20Mutiny&vt1=v&at1=Sport&d1=160200&LaunchPageAdTag=Sport&activePane=info&rnd=25782091
The media really pay attention to the team and make the team important. They seem to take video's of all their home games. They don't do that for UConn and UConn has been to 8 final fours. I don't know where ABC 40 or TV-22 come from...my guess is Springfield but they are doing live highlights of the team. They are doing a pretty good job. It's got to be cool for the players too. They play in front of passionate fans and they get some good air-time on local news sports-casts. By the way if you didn't see the video, the stands looked filled at the game.
Here is the New England Mutiny website.
http://www.mutinysoccer.com/senior-team
My friend Brian and I are probably going to watch CT Soccer Plus at the Mutiny in June.
The Power of Willis
In honor of Willis Reed attending Fenway Park last night a couple of things happened. The Sox hit 5 home-runs. Including back to back ones and David Ortiz ending a homerun drought.
On top of that Jacoby Ellsbury tied a major league record for most put outs by a single outfielder in a 9 inning game. That would be 12.
If you know that Willis Reed aka Kristen Beasley (to prevent confusion for anyone who is googling the other Willis Reed) is attending your game then you would step your game up too.
Willis will not be attending any of the Mets games. This could be the deciding factor in the outcome of the series this weekend. You may not hear about it on ESPN, but you will here. The one disadvantage that the Red Sox will have is that Willis Reed will be unable to attend the game. That is good news for Mets fans like me.
On top of that Jacoby Ellsbury tied a major league record for most put outs by a single outfielder in a 9 inning game. That would be 12.
If you know that Willis Reed aka Kristen Beasley (to prevent confusion for anyone who is googling the other Willis Reed) is attending your game then you would step your game up too.
Willis will not be attending any of the Mets games. This could be the deciding factor in the outcome of the series this weekend. You may not hear about it on ESPN, but you will here. The one disadvantage that the Red Sox will have is that Willis Reed will be unable to attend the game. That is good news for Mets fans like me.
Stopping in at the Shop
My grandpa who passed away a long long time ago, 1968 to be exact, started a small business in Stamford bearing our last name. It repairs electric motors. Anyway, I never met him but I love hearing stories about him. I often stop by when I am in the downtown industrial area to re-connect with my past and see the shop and employees.
One of the things I like about writing is that no matter what happens to me, and you never ever know how long you will live, my writings will live on. In some ways I view writing this blog as a way for athletes to be able to read about their games for the rest of their lives, maybe convince their kids one day that once they were good. Maybe in 150 years from now one of my descendants might want to know about me. The easiest way to communicate with them is through my writing. This probably sounds really really really really mature for someone my age, but I always wonder what my grandpa was like. I never met him, yet he's part of what makes me me. I don't want them to wonder about who I was. I want my descendants to know that I loved sports, hard workers and was a nice, helpful person. They will also know that I have an unhealthy obsession for writing about Meghan Cunningham, a person he's never met.
Back to the shop.
As you can imagine many of the old employees are no longer there, but there is someone who was. C.B. is what I call him, his shirt says Carlton. He's 70, and he's been working at the shop for 44 years. Ever since 1965 when he immigrated from Jamaica. He asked about my entire family and I kept him in the loop. He remembers almost all of us. He also remembers my grandpa pretty well so I asked him about him. He told me that he was really really really nice and didn't discriminate at a time when people did. He said the same thing about my grandma. What struck a chord with me was how he said that my grandpa told him that he doesn't care about a person's skin color etc., what he cared about was who they were as a person, that they were respectful and hard working...So those values are something that have been passed down. He told me that my grandpa traveled up to Hartford to make sure that C.B.'s immigration into the country went on without any problems. C.B. also told me that my grandpa would often go fishing and pick him up on his small 17ft boat from his house so that he could go too. C.B. told me that I had my grandpa's strong legs, and actually similar body type. He told me that my grandpa was a Red Sox fan...My grandma, who he says I have similar facial features of, was a Yankees fan. That ought to have been interesting. I am a Mets fan, which I'm guessing stems from not liking the Yankees. (It's funny how people's lives are sometimes defined by what sports teams they like.)
C.B. and I have also always talked about sports. I talked about sports like I do now when I was 10 and at summer shop parties. We talked football. I think he's a Raiders fan in football. Not quite sure, but I think so. I do remember talking to him about the Raiders a long-time ago. He remembers my love of sports and sports always come up when we talk.
I found out that he watches the UConn women's basketball team, and he brought them up in conversation, not me. Again I am amazed at all the different places that our Women's Basketball team is talked about. This time it was at an electric motor shop. I found out he is a Tina Charles fan. He doesn't know a lot of their names, but he told me he was a fan of the center. He was proud to hear about her being a Jamaican. I told him the story about how Kaili McLaren was in love with my shoes, and showed Tina. Tina said "They'd be great if they were in Jamaican colors." I also told C.B. about O'Brian White, Akeem Priestley, Clive Terrelonge and Trish Ann Hawthorne, other great UConn athletes/coaches with Jamaican heritage.
I love stopping in and saying hello to old acquaintances. He appreciated it. I remember him really well. I think what I did, stopping in an industrial shop to talk to a worker about life is straight out of a country music video. If you turn on CMT or GAC you would see what happened today. Just two people enjoying each other's company and talking about life now and how it used to be.
One of the things I like about writing is that no matter what happens to me, and you never ever know how long you will live, my writings will live on. In some ways I view writing this blog as a way for athletes to be able to read about their games for the rest of their lives, maybe convince their kids one day that once they were good. Maybe in 150 years from now one of my descendants might want to know about me. The easiest way to communicate with them is through my writing. This probably sounds really really really really mature for someone my age, but I always wonder what my grandpa was like. I never met him, yet he's part of what makes me me. I don't want them to wonder about who I was. I want my descendants to know that I loved sports, hard workers and was a nice, helpful person. They will also know that I have an unhealthy obsession for writing about Meghan Cunningham, a person he's never met.
Back to the shop.
As you can imagine many of the old employees are no longer there, but there is someone who was. C.B. is what I call him, his shirt says Carlton. He's 70, and he's been working at the shop for 44 years. Ever since 1965 when he immigrated from Jamaica. He asked about my entire family and I kept him in the loop. He remembers almost all of us. He also remembers my grandpa pretty well so I asked him about him. He told me that he was really really really nice and didn't discriminate at a time when people did. He said the same thing about my grandma. What struck a chord with me was how he said that my grandpa told him that he doesn't care about a person's skin color etc., what he cared about was who they were as a person, that they were respectful and hard working...So those values are something that have been passed down. He told me that my grandpa traveled up to Hartford to make sure that C.B.'s immigration into the country went on without any problems. C.B. also told me that my grandpa would often go fishing and pick him up on his small 17ft boat from his house so that he could go too. C.B. told me that I had my grandpa's strong legs, and actually similar body type. He told me that my grandpa was a Red Sox fan...My grandma, who he says I have similar facial features of, was a Yankees fan. That ought to have been interesting. I am a Mets fan, which I'm guessing stems from not liking the Yankees. (It's funny how people's lives are sometimes defined by what sports teams they like.)
C.B. and I have also always talked about sports. I talked about sports like I do now when I was 10 and at summer shop parties. We talked football. I think he's a Raiders fan in football. Not quite sure, but I think so. I do remember talking to him about the Raiders a long-time ago. He remembers my love of sports and sports always come up when we talk.
I found out that he watches the UConn women's basketball team, and he brought them up in conversation, not me. Again I am amazed at all the different places that our Women's Basketball team is talked about. This time it was at an electric motor shop. I found out he is a Tina Charles fan. He doesn't know a lot of their names, but he told me he was a fan of the center. He was proud to hear about her being a Jamaican. I told him the story about how Kaili McLaren was in love with my shoes, and showed Tina. Tina said "They'd be great if they were in Jamaican colors." I also told C.B. about O'Brian White, Akeem Priestley, Clive Terrelonge and Trish Ann Hawthorne, other great UConn athletes/coaches with Jamaican heritage.
I love stopping in and saying hello to old acquaintances. He appreciated it. I remember him really well. I think what I did, stopping in an industrial shop to talk to a worker about life is straight out of a country music video. If you turn on CMT or GAC you would see what happened today. Just two people enjoying each other's company and talking about life now and how it used to be.
It's amazing
When I was going for a walk yesterday I heard Kanye West use the word "maven" in the song It's Amazing. I got so excited, because I am a maven and because Dr. Fink told us what a maven is.
A maven is someone who gets the word out. A person who tells everyone about things that they like or don't like...An example would be talking about UConn Soccer to anyone who talks about UConn athletics because I think UConn Soccer is pretty good and I think that everyone else should know about it so they can experience how great it is too.
A maven is someone who gets the word out. A person who tells everyone about things that they like or don't like...An example would be talking about UConn Soccer to anyone who talks about UConn athletics because I think UConn Soccer is pretty good and I think that everyone else should know about it so they can experience how great it is too.
An interesting WPSL game
Last year Soccer CT Plus was coached by current Boston Breakers head coach (WPS, and former U.S. National Coach) Tony DiCiccio. He assembled some very good teams, and they traditionally were one of the best teams in the WPSL. This year, I have no idea how good they will be because first of all I only know about select women's soccer players (All of the UConn ones, and famous Big East players that I have seen...and national team players) and secondly they have a new coach and thirdly they haven't played a game yet.
This team, CT Soccerplus, which is generally very good will be hosting the team with 5 current UConn players and an incoming freshman, the New England Mutiny, on Friday night at 6:30 in New Britain. I'm interested in the outcome of this one and will anxiously await the results from my Lake House tomorrow night. I had thought about attending the game but I think I will try to see them play later in the year.
Certainly I would reccomend that you go see them play, or the teams in the W-League play if you like soccer or are a big UConn fan. I'd even reccomend it if your interested in having a career in sports management or like sports in general. I'd recommend that you at-least just check a game out. You never ever know what you'll like unless you try it. 3 years ago I didn't like soccer at all, now I love the sport.
Part of the charm of these soccer leagues (WPSL, USL W-League), and baseball leagues (NECBL, Cape Cod), is that these are amateurs, they are college players, or former college players who aren't playing for money, but rather for a love of the game. I think that's admirable. Who wouldn't want to watch highly skilled athletes competing against each other because they have a love for the game. Plus the ticket prices aren't an arm and a leg.
This team, CT Soccerplus, which is generally very good will be hosting the team with 5 current UConn players and an incoming freshman, the New England Mutiny, on Friday night at 6:30 in New Britain. I'm interested in the outcome of this one and will anxiously await the results from my Lake House tomorrow night. I had thought about attending the game but I think I will try to see them play later in the year.
Certainly I would reccomend that you go see them play, or the teams in the W-League play if you like soccer or are a big UConn fan. I'd even reccomend it if your interested in having a career in sports management or like sports in general. I'd recommend that you at-least just check a game out. You never ever know what you'll like unless you try it. 3 years ago I didn't like soccer at all, now I love the sport.
Part of the charm of these soccer leagues (WPSL, USL W-League), and baseball leagues (NECBL, Cape Cod), is that these are amateurs, they are college players, or former college players who aren't playing for money, but rather for a love of the game. I think that's admirable. Who wouldn't want to watch highly skilled athletes competing against each other because they have a love for the game. Plus the ticket prices aren't an arm and a leg.
As I was watching the Magic/Cavs game
As I was watching the Magic vs Cavs game I couldn't help but make the comparison of Hedo Turkoglu to Toni Kukoc of the Bulls, when the Bulls one all of their championships. I seem to remember Kukoc having an ability to knockdown a big 3 pointer, much like Turkoglu can. I also remember Kukoc having the ability to drive the lane, like Turkoglu can. Turkoglu really reminds me of Kukoc.
Also, I must say that once again last night was a great game to watch. I don't usually get into the NBA, but I couldn't turn off the television last night. It was so back and forth. I thought the game was over after Lebron's 3 point play and the subsequent fouling out of Dwight Howard.
Every great team has someone who steps up when their best player is gone. Rashard Lewis hit two clutch shots to win that game.
Every team, (this goes for high school, college, pro sports, academic and work teams, not just an NBA team) needs people to step up when their best player leaves. Someone needs to step up and take charge. If no one does that then the team will lose because everyone will look around and expect someone else to pick things up for the team. It's a passive mentality, you keep passing it and expect someone else on your team to do it.
Then no one picks it up and the team will play indecisively and with no confidence.
This is not to say that you shouldn't play like a team, because you also need to use your teammates to win. There is a reason that team sports are played with teams. However, if a team is leaderless, someone needs to step up and be a leader. If no one steps up then everyone is going to look around at each other and wait for someone to take charge. While they are looking for a leader they will accomplish nothing. When someone steps up, they can accomplish things.
Also, I must say that once again last night was a great game to watch. I don't usually get into the NBA, but I couldn't turn off the television last night. It was so back and forth. I thought the game was over after Lebron's 3 point play and the subsequent fouling out of Dwight Howard.
Every great team has someone who steps up when their best player is gone. Rashard Lewis hit two clutch shots to win that game.
Every team, (this goes for high school, college, pro sports, academic and work teams, not just an NBA team) needs people to step up when their best player leaves. Someone needs to step up and take charge. If no one does that then the team will lose because everyone will look around and expect someone else to pick things up for the team. It's a passive mentality, you keep passing it and expect someone else on your team to do it.
Then no one picks it up and the team will play indecisively and with no confidence.
This is not to say that you shouldn't play like a team, because you also need to use your teammates to win. There is a reason that team sports are played with teams. However, if a team is leaderless, someone needs to step up and be a leader. If no one steps up then everyone is going to look around at each other and wait for someone to take charge. While they are looking for a leader they will accomplish nothing. When someone steps up, they can accomplish things.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
NBA playoffs
What??? I can't believe I am following the NBA playoffs. Dwight Howard is a beast. He knocked out the shot clock with a dunk.
What really interests me about the Magic vs Cavaliers series is Lebron James vs Dwight Howard. Not them 1 on 1, but what team will advance, the one with a dominant Center or the one with a dominant wing player.
This intrigues me. I wish the series would be as simple as that, It won't be, but I wonder if we can draw any conclusions from the series on Center vs Wing player and which is more important.
Mo Williams...oh what a shot vs the Magic.
Also who would my all-time NBA starting 5 be?
I'll have to iron this out over time...but so far I have John Stockton, Michael Jordan and Bill Russell
What really interests me about the Magic vs Cavaliers series is Lebron James vs Dwight Howard. Not them 1 on 1, but what team will advance, the one with a dominant Center or the one with a dominant wing player.
This intrigues me. I wish the series would be as simple as that, It won't be, but I wonder if we can draw any conclusions from the series on Center vs Wing player and which is more important.
Mo Williams...oh what a shot vs the Magic.
Also who would my all-time NBA starting 5 be?
I'll have to iron this out over time...but so far I have John Stockton, Michael Jordan and Bill Russell
Willis inspired this
So I just logged on to facebook and saw Willis's status about a home-run derby at Fenway...It's the top of the 8th and the Red Sox have hit 5 home runs, including 4 homeruns in the 5th inning, including back to back homeruns by Jason (WHY DID THE METS TRADE HIM TO GET STEVE REED) Bay and Mike Lowell.
I've seen back to back homeruns at a baseball game before. It beats Bay and Lowell too. I saw Brian McRae and Bobby Bonilla go back to back at Shea Stadium. That's was an amazing moment. The chances of them going back to back are so slim, yet they did it in my presence.
The first grand slam I ever saw at a game was at Comerica Park by Tiger Dean Palmer. The second live grand slam I ever saw was by Jorge Posada at the Sky Dome. The longest Home Run I've ever seen live at a game is probably off of the bat of Carlos Delgado as he hit one off of the glass on the resturuants at Sky Dome.
The first homerun I ever saw was at Shea Stadium and I believe it was by Damon Buford. He hit two that game. I was so young at the time but I researched box scores and looked for Mets v Astros games when I was 7 or 8 that had stats that were similar to what I remember happening. Carl Everett also homered for the Mets that game.
If you think I saw a lot of Mike Piazza home runs your wrong. For whatever reason in the tons of games that I saw he almost never homered. He did hit one, one of the longest ones I remember, against the Rockies at Shea Stadium off of Mike Hampton in his return to Shea. It hit off of the camera tower in center field. The player I think I've seen homer the most often is Edgardo Alfonzo and Carlos Delgado. I've seen tons of Alfonzo's games. I also traveled to Toronto and saw Delgado play atleast 5 games at Sky Dome. I've also seen him play for the Mets and he's homered at almost all of the games that I've been at these played in.
My first and last games at Yankee Stadium were great. Mariano Duncan homered for the Yankees. Damion Easley lead off the game with a homerun off of Jimmy Key I think. The Tigers creamed the Yankees. The last game I saw was the only Subway Series game that I've been too. Cliff Floyd (who often homered at games I went to) homered, as did David Wright. The Mets creamed the Yankees.
The last game I saw at Shea was also great. The Mets won. Daniel Murphy's homerun was the last homerun I saw at Shea. Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado also homered.
Vladimir Guererro also hit some incredible homeruns. He creamed one at Shea once, but the one I really remember was a homerun he hit off of Met picther Mark Corey at Olympic Stadium. (Olympic Stadium games were so weird, The Expos played in Montreal which is in Quebec, where they speak French. Everything was spoken in French first and then English.)
Vlad hit a pitch that was clearly a ball, maybe 3-6 inches from the ground over the center field fence.
I've seen back to back homeruns at a baseball game before. It beats Bay and Lowell too. I saw Brian McRae and Bobby Bonilla go back to back at Shea Stadium. That's was an amazing moment. The chances of them going back to back are so slim, yet they did it in my presence.
The first grand slam I ever saw at a game was at Comerica Park by Tiger Dean Palmer. The second live grand slam I ever saw was by Jorge Posada at the Sky Dome. The longest Home Run I've ever seen live at a game is probably off of the bat of Carlos Delgado as he hit one off of the glass on the resturuants at Sky Dome.
The first homerun I ever saw was at Shea Stadium and I believe it was by Damon Buford. He hit two that game. I was so young at the time but I researched box scores and looked for Mets v Astros games when I was 7 or 8 that had stats that were similar to what I remember happening. Carl Everett also homered for the Mets that game.
If you think I saw a lot of Mike Piazza home runs your wrong. For whatever reason in the tons of games that I saw he almost never homered. He did hit one, one of the longest ones I remember, against the Rockies at Shea Stadium off of Mike Hampton in his return to Shea. It hit off of the camera tower in center field. The player I think I've seen homer the most often is Edgardo Alfonzo and Carlos Delgado. I've seen tons of Alfonzo's games. I also traveled to Toronto and saw Delgado play atleast 5 games at Sky Dome. I've also seen him play for the Mets and he's homered at almost all of the games that I've been at these played in.
My first and last games at Yankee Stadium were great. Mariano Duncan homered for the Yankees. Damion Easley lead off the game with a homerun off of Jimmy Key I think. The Tigers creamed the Yankees. The last game I saw was the only Subway Series game that I've been too. Cliff Floyd (who often homered at games I went to) homered, as did David Wright. The Mets creamed the Yankees.
The last game I saw at Shea was also great. The Mets won. Daniel Murphy's homerun was the last homerun I saw at Shea. Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado also homered.
Vladimir Guererro also hit some incredible homeruns. He creamed one at Shea once, but the one I really remember was a homerun he hit off of Met picther Mark Corey at Olympic Stadium. (Olympic Stadium games were so weird, The Expos played in Montreal which is in Quebec, where they speak French. Everything was spoken in French first and then English.)
Vlad hit a pitch that was clearly a ball, maybe 3-6 inches from the ground over the center field fence.
Shaq is cool
On Sportscenter I saw that Shaq was taking a class at Syracuse to learn how to be broadcaster. He said that he wanted to learn from the professionals and he learned how tough it is to be a broadcaster. The thing that he said that I really liked hearing was that Shaq didn't want to just rely on his name to be a broadcaster. He wanted to actually learn how to broadcast so he could be good at it.
I like that he's not just using his name. He is working hard to be a good broadcaster and I have gained a lot of respect for him because he took a class on broadcasting.
I like that he's not just using his name. He is working hard to be a good broadcaster and I have gained a lot of respect for him because he took a class on broadcasting.
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Erin Clark makes people Get Silly
Erin Clark put the boogies on them...
Now I love hyping things up, but this is legitimately making people look silly. Like there are times when I'm serious and times when I am not. This is legitimately making people look silly, and it legitimately should get you to Morrone this Fall. I am being serious.
This is a highlight of Erin Clark just being Erin Clark and doing something that well I wish I saw live...This is Erin Clark putting the boogies on the Maine Tide.
http://a-walking-life.com/mutiny/video/5-16-09%20game.mov
It doesn't even look like the defender knew what had just happened. You have to watch Erin Clark's feet closely...
Oh my gosh she put the boogies on them. (I hope Ryan Grace is ok with using this term...because it is a Ryan Graceism) look at the goal keeper and the defender.
I wish I could do that...and if you don't think I will try to do that tomorrow when I get bored, your wrong, I will.
The video shows two of her 3 goals...the first one (which is the second one that she scored) is just ridiculous.
I will be at a game for sure. I could probably watch a replay of that for hours and still want to see it again. That was pretty, amazing (For the Mutiny and Erin Clark) and embarrassing (for the Maine Tide) all at the same time. I might put that on my Ipod and use it to show people why they should watch UConn soccer. I'm dead serious about that...I just hope my computer will work.
Here is an Erin Clark interesting fact that Erin Clark probably doesn't know about herself: In UConn's first four wins of 2007, Clark, as a freshman, had the game winning goal or an assist on the game winning goal.
See the story Correction above...I love this play, but I also realized that Clark kicked it off of the defender and in and not off of herself.
Now I love hyping things up, but this is legitimately making people look silly. Like there are times when I'm serious and times when I am not. This is legitimately making people look silly, and it legitimately should get you to Morrone this Fall. I am being serious.
This is a highlight of Erin Clark just being Erin Clark and doing something that well I wish I saw live...This is Erin Clark putting the boogies on the Maine Tide.
http://a-walking-life.com/mutiny/video/5-16-09%20game.mov
It doesn't even look like the defender knew what had just happened. You have to watch Erin Clark's feet closely...
Oh my gosh she put the boogies on them. (I hope Ryan Grace is ok with using this term...because it is a Ryan Graceism) look at the goal keeper and the defender.
I wish I could do that...and if you don't think I will try to do that tomorrow when I get bored, your wrong, I will.
The video shows two of her 3 goals...the first one (which is the second one that she scored) is just ridiculous.
I will be at a game for sure. I could probably watch a replay of that for hours and still want to see it again. That was pretty, amazing (For the Mutiny and Erin Clark) and embarrassing (for the Maine Tide) all at the same time. I might put that on my Ipod and use it to show people why they should watch UConn soccer. I'm dead serious about that...I just hope my computer will work.
Here is an Erin Clark interesting fact that Erin Clark probably doesn't know about herself: In UConn's first four wins of 2007, Clark, as a freshman, had the game winning goal or an assist on the game winning goal.
See the story Correction above...I love this play, but I also realized that Clark kicked it off of the defender and in and not off of herself.
NECBL/Cape Cod League/Award for Springer
George Springer was named Big East Rookie of The Year.
Some UConn baseball New England College Baseball League info:
Peter Jennings, Peter Fatse and Mike Nemeth will play for the Holyoke Blue Sox...Also Stamford native, and Black Knight, Mike Sciaretta is on the team.
Ted Hurvul will be with the Danbury Westerners.
Michael Zaccardo will be playing for the North Shore Navigators.
John Andreoli will be playing with the Pittsfield American Defenders.
Doug Elliot will be playing for the Sanford Mainers.
Kevin Vance will be playing for the Vermont Mountaineers.
Ryan Grace will be working for the New Bedford Bay Sox.
Matt Barnes, David Fischer and George Springer will be playing for the Wareham Gateman baseball team... (Willis would have a problem with this place being called part of the Cape Cod League.) Dusty Odenbach is a Non-Roster Invitee for the team.
Willis Reed aka Kristen Beasley will be working with the Cotiut Kettleers of the Cape Cod League.
Mike Olt and Elliot Glynn will be playing for the Orleans Firebirds
Pierre LePage and Dan Mahoney will be playing for the Bourne Braves.
According to Willis the Cape Cod teams named after MLB Teams have to change their team names every year or they would have to pay a large fee.
I will also plan on attending a Cape Cod League game...Probably Wareham at Cotuit so I can see Springer play...and of course see the amazing intern skills of Willis Reed, the pride of UConn's Sports Management Program.
Some UConn baseball New England College Baseball League info:
Peter Jennings, Peter Fatse and Mike Nemeth will play for the Holyoke Blue Sox...Also Stamford native, and Black Knight, Mike Sciaretta is on the team.
Ted Hurvul will be with the Danbury Westerners.
Michael Zaccardo will be playing for the North Shore Navigators.
John Andreoli will be playing with the Pittsfield American Defenders.
Doug Elliot will be playing for the Sanford Mainers.
Kevin Vance will be playing for the Vermont Mountaineers.
Ryan Grace will be working for the New Bedford Bay Sox.
Matt Barnes, David Fischer and George Springer will be playing for the Wareham Gateman baseball team... (Willis would have a problem with this place being called part of the Cape Cod League.) Dusty Odenbach is a Non-Roster Invitee for the team.
Willis Reed aka Kristen Beasley will be working with the Cotiut Kettleers of the Cape Cod League.
Mike Olt and Elliot Glynn will be playing for the Orleans Firebirds
Pierre LePage and Dan Mahoney will be playing for the Bourne Braves.
According to Willis the Cape Cod teams named after MLB Teams have to change their team names every year or they would have to pay a large fee.
I will also plan on attending a Cape Cod League game...Probably Wareham at Cotuit so I can see Springer play...and of course see the amazing intern skills of Willis Reed, the pride of UConn's Sports Management Program.
Wait a second?
Wait a second, so I am talking about women's soccer players not named Meghan Cunningham, Erin Clark, Cory Bildstein or former UConn player Stephanie Labbe?
You and I thought the day would never come, but then I was informed of the W-League and the USL. Then I saw how many people play in it from UConn. I love hard workers...and I love those 4 players listed above, but these other women's soccer players deserve some attention too...so now I have even more games to keep track of.
I also will plan on attending the Pioneers game or games. I may see them before I see the Mutiny.
I will still try to see the Mutiny this summer, I just may not be making the away game against Soccer CT plus on Friday.
So far only one UConn player has a hat trick...that would be Erin Clark...
Kacey Richards scored on a penalty kick.
Another one has an assist and that would be Elise Fugowski.
You and I thought the day would never come, but then I was informed of the W-League and the USL. Then I saw how many people play in it from UConn. I love hard workers...and I love those 4 players listed above, but these other women's soccer players deserve some attention too...so now I have even more games to keep track of.
I also will plan on attending the Pioneers game or games. I may see them before I see the Mutiny.
I will still try to see the Mutiny this summer, I just may not be making the away game against Soccer CT plus on Friday.
So far only one UConn player has a hat trick...that would be Erin Clark...
Kacey Richards scored on a penalty kick.
Another one has an assist and that would be Elise Fugowski.
YES!!!!!!!!!!!
UConn baseball upset West Virginia 6-1 in the first game of the Big East Tournament. We were the 6 seed, West Virginia was the 3 seed.
West Virginia came to UConn and swept us. They were one of two Big East teams at the time to have swept us. The other school is not good enough to be named. AKA the school with the player that kicked Melissa Busque in the head.
The pitching for UConn was phenomenal. Elliot Glynn threw 7.1 innings and gave up only 1 run on 7 hits. Dusty Odenbach finished the game for UConn and gave up no hits and struck out two in 1.2 innings of work.
The UConn baseball team has dramatically improved and I must say that they are fun to watch, especially with George Springer and Mike Olt in the line-up.
Pierre LePage also went 3-4 today in the win.
West Virginia came to UConn and swept us. They were one of two Big East teams at the time to have swept us. The other school is not good enough to be named. AKA the school with the player that kicked Melissa Busque in the head.
The pitching for UConn was phenomenal. Elliot Glynn threw 7.1 innings and gave up only 1 run on 7 hits. Dusty Odenbach finished the game for UConn and gave up no hits and struck out two in 1.2 innings of work.
The UConn baseball team has dramatically improved and I must say that they are fun to watch, especially with George Springer and Mike Olt in the line-up.
Pierre LePage also went 3-4 today in the win.
Oh no I am so behind
So the Western Mass Pioneers of the W-League also feature UConn women's soccer players. These would include Sam Kelley, Brianna Gray, Amanda Schwartz, Kacey Richards, and Courtney Wilkinson Maitland. Two former UConn Players Shauna Musser and Ashley O'Brien also play on the team.
They have a game on Saturday May 23rd and on Sunday May 31st. Their games are played in Ludlow, Mass which is off of I-90. It is not too far from Agawam, Ma where the New England Mutiny and some other UConn players play.
These two teams are in different leagues and will not play each other. The Mutiny are in the WPSL. The Lady Blues and Pioneers are in the W-League.
Elise Fugowski and Brittany Taylor play for the Hudson Valley Quickstrike Lady Blues.
Fugowski had an assist for the Lady Blues in the 3-1 win over the Pioneers. Kacey Richards scored the lone goal for the Pioneers on a penalty kick.
They have a game on Saturday May 23rd and on Sunday May 31st. Their games are played in Ludlow, Mass which is off of I-90. It is not too far from Agawam, Ma where the New England Mutiny and some other UConn players play.
These two teams are in different leagues and will not play each other. The Mutiny are in the WPSL. The Lady Blues and Pioneers are in the W-League.
Elise Fugowski and Brittany Taylor play for the Hudson Valley Quickstrike Lady Blues.
Fugowski had an assist for the Lady Blues in the 3-1 win over the Pioneers. Kacey Richards scored the lone goal for the Pioneers on a penalty kick.
I think
I think that the hardest job for a coach is to prevent complacency.
This mostly applies to winning teams though. I'd hope a losing team doesn't become complacent.
This mostly applies to winning teams though. I'd hope a losing team doesn't become complacent.
From the dinner table
My mom is great cook, but yesterday she left the green beans on the stove a little too long and the green beans got slightly burnt.
I had some and then I said that they smelled like Sam Witryol's Tobacco...only green beans are healthy.
My dad then goes "yeah you're right, they do smell like tobacco."
I also found it really interesting that the UConn Women's Rowing team wouldn't wear their UConn gear in Tennessee because they were afraid that it would be a security risk. (UConn and Tennessee have a huge Women's Basketball Rivalry....I hope you know that...and if you don't, and you go to UConn....there is something wrong with you)
I had some and then I said that they smelled like Sam Witryol's Tobacco...only green beans are healthy.
My dad then goes "yeah you're right, they do smell like tobacco."
I also found it really interesting that the UConn Women's Rowing team wouldn't wear their UConn gear in Tennessee because they were afraid that it would be a security risk. (UConn and Tennessee have a huge Women's Basketball Rivalry....I hope you know that...and if you don't, and you go to UConn....there is something wrong with you)
Those Mets
So the Mets had 5 errors yesterday. My Mets looked like a joke. 5 errors is dreadful. The entire defense/lineup is completely inconsistent do to injuries. You have former outfielders playing first base...than they make a throwing error that loses the game. You have an outfielder that can't hear that he was called off on a fly ball.
On top of that you missed third base in the 11th as you went on to score a run. Ryan Church did that and as he returned to the dugout I could see just how bad of a relationship his manager Jerry Manuel has with him. Manuel didn't even look at him, he turned his back. He also didn't say anything to re-assure Church after the play or during the press conference sound bite I heard after the game. If anything he threw Church under the bus...and that's a really bad thing.
No coach should have that bad of a relationship with a player. If I was a coach the first thing I'd do after one of my players makes a mistake during a key part of the game would be to give them a confidence booster. No one wants to make a mistake, but it happens, and dwelling on it will only inhibit good things from happening. If I was really, secretly annoyed about what happened I'd bring it up the next day in a more relaxed setting.
The best athletes have a bad enough memory not to remember what they did wrong, but a good enough memory to remember their mistakes so that they can avoid doing them again.
On top of that you missed third base in the 11th as you went on to score a run. Ryan Church did that and as he returned to the dugout I could see just how bad of a relationship his manager Jerry Manuel has with him. Manuel didn't even look at him, he turned his back. He also didn't say anything to re-assure Church after the play or during the press conference sound bite I heard after the game. If anything he threw Church under the bus...and that's a really bad thing.
No coach should have that bad of a relationship with a player. If I was a coach the first thing I'd do after one of my players makes a mistake during a key part of the game would be to give them a confidence booster. No one wants to make a mistake, but it happens, and dwelling on it will only inhibit good things from happening. If I was really, secretly annoyed about what happened I'd bring it up the next day in a more relaxed setting.
The best athletes have a bad enough memory not to remember what they did wrong, but a good enough memory to remember their mistakes so that they can avoid doing them again.
I find it amusing
I wrote something that made fun of my Mets on twitter. Then I found out that some Mets related person was following me on Twitter.
Also in case you were wondering, which I know you weren't, I told the Stephanie Labbe bacon story to my doctor yesterday and dentist today. They thought it was funny. They love it when I come in because I am so personable...and young too...so they don't hear about any complaints. My dentist loves me because I always make her laugh.
I also told my dentist about Melissa Busque getting kicked in the head, and the incidents with the baseball team because she is from New York, and I had thought she had mentioned St. Johns once in conversation.
I also told my dentist about Cory Bildstein's kick just to be weird. We got started talking about sports and it came up.
I wish I had gotten around to seeing the dentist that went to UConn. I would have informed him about Friends Of Soccer.
The Safelite guy came to my house to replace my windshield and he was a great guy. He followed both of the UConn Basketball teams this year so we immediately spoke about that. Also a little bit about UConn Football. I also briefly mentioned our other National Championship teams...Field Hockey and Men's Soccer. I told him that Women's Soccer had been to 8 final fours too. He was impressed that UConn had so many other great teams.
Also in case you were wondering, which I know you weren't, I told the Stephanie Labbe bacon story to my doctor yesterday and dentist today. They thought it was funny. They love it when I come in because I am so personable...and young too...so they don't hear about any complaints. My dentist loves me because I always make her laugh.
I also told my dentist about Melissa Busque getting kicked in the head, and the incidents with the baseball team because she is from New York, and I had thought she had mentioned St. Johns once in conversation.
I also told my dentist about Cory Bildstein's kick just to be weird. We got started talking about sports and it came up.
I wish I had gotten around to seeing the dentist that went to UConn. I would have informed him about Friends Of Soccer.
The Safelite guy came to my house to replace my windshield and he was a great guy. He followed both of the UConn Basketball teams this year so we immediately spoke about that. Also a little bit about UConn Football. I also briefly mentioned our other National Championship teams...Field Hockey and Men's Soccer. I told him that Women's Soccer had been to 8 final fours too. He was impressed that UConn had so many other great teams.
Monday, May 18, 2009
3 chapters in
Here are a few of the take-aways I have from "The Girls of Summer" by Jere Longman about the 1999 Women's World Cup winning U.S. Soccer team...Hard to believe that was 10 years ago.
I will write a little bit more in depth about confidence, Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain and those famous penalty kicks later.
I of course found a hard worker and well she needs her name to be mentioned. Michelle Akers of the U.S. team had played so hard, exhausted herself to such an extreme that she had to have her jersey cut off of her after the game. That's crazy...and I love hard workers.
The Women's Soccer team had a lot of fan support too. One girl ran after the team bus after a game against Nigeria at Soldier Field for a half mile with hands waving...almost hitting a parked car...the players stopped the bus and Brandi Chastain gave her a pair of autographed shoes.
The players were also swarmed at hotels, girls rode in elevators and knocked on the players doors. They had people waiting in hotel lobbies to get autographs.
(I apologize and take any of the blame necessary if something like that happens to Meghan Cunningham. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience should that ever happen to her)
Boys and Girls were both wearing Mia Hamm jersey's during the cup.
Also the timing of the event was just right. About a week after the U.S. won John F. Kennedy Jr. died and that story would have overshadowed the tremendous event that took place for women's soccer. President Clinton and the Governor of California both watched the game together at the Rose Bowl too.
I will write a little bit more in depth about confidence, Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain and those famous penalty kicks later.
I of course found a hard worker and well she needs her name to be mentioned. Michelle Akers of the U.S. team had played so hard, exhausted herself to such an extreme that she had to have her jersey cut off of her after the game. That's crazy...and I love hard workers.
The Women's Soccer team had a lot of fan support too. One girl ran after the team bus after a game against Nigeria at Soldier Field for a half mile with hands waving...almost hitting a parked car...the players stopped the bus and Brandi Chastain gave her a pair of autographed shoes.
The players were also swarmed at hotels, girls rode in elevators and knocked on the players doors. They had people waiting in hotel lobbies to get autographs.
(I apologize and take any of the blame necessary if something like that happens to Meghan Cunningham. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience should that ever happen to her)
Boys and Girls were both wearing Mia Hamm jersey's during the cup.
Also the timing of the event was just right. About a week after the U.S. won John F. Kennedy Jr. died and that story would have overshadowed the tremendous event that took place for women's soccer. President Clinton and the Governor of California both watched the game together at the Rose Bowl too.
Found this interesting
E.O. Smith won at high school rowing. The Girls won for their second year in a row, the boys won their 4th year in a row...E.O. Smith won the 4 person boat races. Greenwich High School won the 8 person boat races and the overall championship.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
I can't believe
Joe Maddon made a mistake with the line-up card. He had two 3rd baseman in the line-up card so he ended up having Andrew Sonastine, the pitcher hitting 3rd in the line-up...with Evan Longoria on the bench,
Wouldn't you know it, Sonnanstine had an RBI double...The Rays won in a crazy game that also featured a bench clearing brawl.
Wouldn't you know it, Sonnanstine had an RBI double...The Rays won in a crazy game that also featured a bench clearing brawl.
Celtics missed KG...DUH
The Celtics needed one more piece. That would have been Kevin Garnett. They needed another scoring option. They clearly weren't the same team. They had to claw their way to a lot of the wins that they got. They were scrappy and I think they maxed out with the team that they had. In that sense Celtics fans should be happy. I know that they aren't, but take the playoffs as a moral victory. Hopefully they can go all the way with the addition of Kevin Garnett next year.
Dwight Howard is also amazing...I'd much rather have a dominant Center than a dominant player at any other position.
I also heard in Mets news that the Mets might get Billy Wagner back in August. Can you imagine Wagner, Putz and K-Rod? yikes.
Dwight Howard is also amazing...I'd much rather have a dominant Center than a dominant player at any other position.
I also heard in Mets news that the Mets might get Billy Wagner back in August. Can you imagine Wagner, Putz and K-Rod? yikes.
Riley Racing
I've been meaning to write about the Riley's for a long time. They own the Riley dealerships around Stamford...Riley Mazda, Stamford Volvo... Both their sons went to UConn and both of them and their father race cars. I know their son A.J. a bit because I have gone to see him race a couple of times at Lime Rock Park in the Northwest corner of the state.
A.J. Riley is a UConn Student-Athlete that one really knows about because he's not on UConn Huskies.com. He's not a varsity athlete but A.J. has been involved in motorsports for a longtime. He also graduated fairly high up in his class from the school of Business. A.J. has a good future in whatever he chooses to do.
http://www.rileyracing.com/index.cfm
I love Motorsports. I've been to an SCCA race, NASCAR Race, and an IRL Race. I've watched Races at Lime Rock Park, The streets of St. Petersburg, Pocono Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway. I've also walked on Homestead Miami speedway.
There is something about hearing those engines running that gets your testosterone and adrenaline flowing. I love listening to races. Just hearing those engines going by. Hearing them roar and feeling the ground shake around you. It's such a cool thing to see.
A.J. and his brother Jameson have won races locally and have driven a variety of different cars. I've seen their father Chris race a mini-cooper, Jameson drive a Volvo S-40...at the time...and maybe still is, was the only real racing Volvo in the country. A saw A.J. drive an open-wheel car. I think I saw A.J. win. I watched Jameson race on the Speed Channel once.
Both A.J. and Jameson are in good Shape. I know A.J. enjoys cycling. I've seen him at the gym at UConn on many occasions. Don't you dare think that they don't stay in shape or workout. That is a huge misnomer. A.J. would race around the country and also was a tremendous student at UConn. Not that many people know about him being a Student Athlete because he never drove for the school.
The Family would bring their RV and cars to Lime Rock for the weekend...and whatever places they raced at...which included Mid Ohio, and Watkins Glenn. They spent several days...qualifying, practicing and racing there.
I got to see a lot of cool things because we knew them. We got to be in the garage as they were getting into the car and as they were coming back from the race.
Often at races they talk about drifting into the marbles...really it's the stuff on the side of the road with debris....The tires get so hot while racing that they pick up that debris when driving. The cars also are devoid of everything that could possibly add weight.
Racing is extremely expensive and the fact that they own Riley Mazda and Stamford Volvo helps them with racing. They also have great sponsors, like Castrol Syntec Motor oil. Still it is very expensive to race, and unfortunately with the economy the way it is they will be cutting back this year.
The entire family got involved during the race. They used walkie talkies and radios to communicate with the driver and each other...the spotters and moral support. Usually two people would be spotters at a track like Lime Rock, a road circuit with a lot of turns and hills.
There would be tents, 18 wheelers and race cars everywhere in the in-field on race weekends. It's basically a small town with lots of race cars, and race parts.
Other people who raced at Lime Rock when I attended races would be, Paul Newman, the deceased actor and founder of "Newman's Own" grocery products. He'd change his car number every year he raced because he'd put his age as the car number.
Drivers get in such a zone that it takes them a little bit before they can get out of there car and talk to people. They sometimes take as long as 5 minutes just to get out of the car and get back to reality. It took Newman awhile. I found the same thing after I go on an intense bike ride. I sometimes just sit and stare into the woods, or at the ground or grass for a seemingly endless amount of time just to get my mind right.
(It's also why I often will not talk to any athletes I know at sporting events. I am very hesitant to bother them. I saw Willis after her race this year but I felt like it was too close after the race for me to speak with her so I waited a little bit longer and went over to speak with her after I felt like she had a good cooling off period)
I also saw Marco Andretti race at Lime Rock. Yes he's related to Mario Andretti, the famous race-car driver. Marco now races in the IRL.
Lime Rock is such a pretty race track and it's a great place to sit and watch a race. You can bring your family or friends for a picnic and watch some good racing. Really if you have never been to a race before you should go and check it out. It's in such a pretty part of the State of Connecticut.
http://www.limerock.com/
Tomorrow, May 18th, is also A.J. Riley's birthday. Just thought you should know. Facebook is good for some things.
A.J. Riley is a UConn Student-Athlete that one really knows about because he's not on UConn Huskies.com. He's not a varsity athlete but A.J. has been involved in motorsports for a longtime. He also graduated fairly high up in his class from the school of Business. A.J. has a good future in whatever he chooses to do.
http://www.rileyracing.com/index.cfm
I love Motorsports. I've been to an SCCA race, NASCAR Race, and an IRL Race. I've watched Races at Lime Rock Park, The streets of St. Petersburg, Pocono Raceway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway. I've also walked on Homestead Miami speedway.
There is something about hearing those engines running that gets your testosterone and adrenaline flowing. I love listening to races. Just hearing those engines going by. Hearing them roar and feeling the ground shake around you. It's such a cool thing to see.
A.J. and his brother Jameson have won races locally and have driven a variety of different cars. I've seen their father Chris race a mini-cooper, Jameson drive a Volvo S-40...at the time...and maybe still is, was the only real racing Volvo in the country. A saw A.J. drive an open-wheel car. I think I saw A.J. win. I watched Jameson race on the Speed Channel once.
Both A.J. and Jameson are in good Shape. I know A.J. enjoys cycling. I've seen him at the gym at UConn on many occasions. Don't you dare think that they don't stay in shape or workout. That is a huge misnomer. A.J. would race around the country and also was a tremendous student at UConn. Not that many people know about him being a Student Athlete because he never drove for the school.
The Family would bring their RV and cars to Lime Rock for the weekend...and whatever places they raced at...which included Mid Ohio, and Watkins Glenn. They spent several days...qualifying, practicing and racing there.
I got to see a lot of cool things because we knew them. We got to be in the garage as they were getting into the car and as they were coming back from the race.
Often at races they talk about drifting into the marbles...really it's the stuff on the side of the road with debris....The tires get so hot while racing that they pick up that debris when driving. The cars also are devoid of everything that could possibly add weight.
Racing is extremely expensive and the fact that they own Riley Mazda and Stamford Volvo helps them with racing. They also have great sponsors, like Castrol Syntec Motor oil. Still it is very expensive to race, and unfortunately with the economy the way it is they will be cutting back this year.
The entire family got involved during the race. They used walkie talkies and radios to communicate with the driver and each other...the spotters and moral support. Usually two people would be spotters at a track like Lime Rock, a road circuit with a lot of turns and hills.
There would be tents, 18 wheelers and race cars everywhere in the in-field on race weekends. It's basically a small town with lots of race cars, and race parts.
Other people who raced at Lime Rock when I attended races would be, Paul Newman, the deceased actor and founder of "Newman's Own" grocery products. He'd change his car number every year he raced because he'd put his age as the car number.
Drivers get in such a zone that it takes them a little bit before they can get out of there car and talk to people. They sometimes take as long as 5 minutes just to get out of the car and get back to reality. It took Newman awhile. I found the same thing after I go on an intense bike ride. I sometimes just sit and stare into the woods, or at the ground or grass for a seemingly endless amount of time just to get my mind right.
(It's also why I often will not talk to any athletes I know at sporting events. I am very hesitant to bother them. I saw Willis after her race this year but I felt like it was too close after the race for me to speak with her so I waited a little bit longer and went over to speak with her after I felt like she had a good cooling off period)
I also saw Marco Andretti race at Lime Rock. Yes he's related to Mario Andretti, the famous race-car driver. Marco now races in the IRL.
Lime Rock is such a pretty race track and it's a great place to sit and watch a race. You can bring your family or friends for a picnic and watch some good racing. Really if you have never been to a race before you should go and check it out. It's in such a pretty part of the State of Connecticut.
http://www.limerock.com/
Tomorrow, May 18th, is also A.J. Riley's birthday. Just thought you should know. Facebook is good for some things.