Dec. 21, 2007

Our trip to Hawaii was great in every way. Sun, beaches, waves, shopping,, restaurants, the list could go on. However, the most important thing is that we were 3-0 in Hawaii and won the Paradise Classic. In Hawaii, just like in Colorado last year, no one knew who we were or how hard we play. We always have something to prove every time we step on the floor and it felt great to not only beat Hawaii, Oregon State, and Tennessee Tech but to bring home that tournament trophy.

While at the beach, some of us (those who were not scared of the water like Ashley Pellom and Kendra Carroll haha) saw some huge waves! The waves on the Carolina coast cannot compare to the height and strength of the waves in Hawaii. I'm usually not the one to freely get in the ocean but since the water was clear and I could see that no sharks were going to eat me, I decided to join. I had a great time but I will admit I was knocked down and washed into shore a couple of times.

On Sunday, we went to Pearl Harbor. I've learned about Pearl Harbor, seen the movie, etc. but nothing can prepare you for the memorial site. When a tragedy from long ago is written about in a book or portrayed in a movie, it's easy to think of it as just that--a book or a movie. However, actually going to the memorial in the middle of the water and seeing the USS Arizona still under water with oil still seeping from inside was a reality check.

Coming back from Hawaii, there was a question about the team having jet lag for our next game against the University of Tennessee Chattanooga. In an attempt to prevent jet lag, most of the team stayed on Pacific Time even after we got back to Cullowhee. This means that instead of going to bed at 11 p.m. and waking at 8 or 9 a.m., we went to bed at around 4 a.m. and woke up at around 12 p.m. Whether the time change still had an affect, we will never really know.

The UTC game was a big game and in my book it will always be a big game no matter what. We beat them twice last regular season but fell to them in the tournament final. Losing doesn't sit too well with this team so we were all ready to come out and show everyone that we want to be number one and will do whatever it takes to do so. Our teammate and one of my co-captains, Brooke Johnson, hurt her knee right before half time on a fast break. We were all a little worried because there have been six knee surgeries within our team (Kendra Eaton 1, Chevon Keith 1, Kellie Harper 2 and I've had 2) but we knew we had to continue to play hard for the rest of the game.

We ended up losing 86-81. In the locker room Kellie told us to come back ready to get better and hungry to win every game for the rest of the season. Though we've played well and won some games, it's only a matter of time before our hard work and determination will ultimately pay off and get us where we want to be.

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