In three quick games, the 7th/8th grade girls volleyball team has already seen both ends of the spectrum - the high of the highs and the low of the lows. Unfortunately, they left the court tonight feeling the latter.
After a slow start to a very winnable first set (21-25), the girls came back and absolutely owned the second set, and took it 25-4, forcing a third and decisive set.
Looking at the scores, you would think the 7th/8th grade girls were on their way to win number two. Not so fast.
In the third set, they put themselves behind the 8-ball, the same mistakes, two girls going for the same ball, not communicating, faulting on serves. They had soon dug themselves a 13-4 hole.
But on the next point, they forced a sideout and Jocelyn stepped up to serve. Her overhand serves were vicious and it brought the girls right back into the game. After 7 straight serves, it was 13-12.
However Jocelyn's foot grazed the serving line resulting in a foot fault, and the girls again had their backs up against the wall.
Down 14-12, knowing that their next mistake would mean the game, they were able to rally back, and then even take a 16-15 lead, serving on match point.
Unfortunately, that's where the game fell apart, as the girls lost the next three points and lost for the second straight game. The score in the final set was 18-16 as the girls drop to (1-2).
Lost in the shuffle of the outcome were the positives that came out of this game. There were many.
Cynthia, Pamela and Jocelyn all put together a string of serves that helped the girls rack up points in the second set.
Maria became the second girl on the team to hit the 10 serves in a row limit in the second.
Belin started the second set with the serve and served four balls in a row over, the first time she had done so in a St. Mary's uniform.
Collectively the team was just so good on their serves in the second set the other team didn't stand a chance.
But all those bright spots were negated by the crucial mistakes the girls made in the first and third sets. The girls were bumping into each other way too frequent, and the team chemistry is still very shaky.
Their biggest volleyball flaw right now is simply communicating. Girls in the front row were going for balls that the back row had already called. Two girls would end up bumping into each other and the ball would not make it back over the net.
Serve receives are also a big problem. When the girls do not serve, they have been prone to giving up chunks of points. They have trouble shaking off mistakes and moving onto the next point.
However, when they serve and could get on a roll, they're almost unstoppable.
The second set was so easy because all of the strong servers were lined up for the 7th/8th graders. The match-ups were heavily in their favor and they took advantage of it. But when the playing field tilted in the third, it was a whole new ballgame.
But tonight was very much like the week before. A winnable game that never was due to their own errors.
This is still a very inexperienced team with only two out of the nine girls playing volleyball prior to three weeks ago, so a lot of these mistakes are going to happen.
Sooner or later, they are going to have to stop using inexperience as a crutch, and just step up and make it happen.
There's five more games to do that.
.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Happy Birthday to My Mom
Happy Birthday to my very own Mom, she is now --. We celebrate her birthday with my favorite song about mothers, from the late but great, Tupac, Dear Mama.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Wow...The best night of baseball in our lifetimes
Last night was exactly why you watch sports of any kind.
If you are a baseball fan or a sports fan in general, for two hours last night, you should've been glued to your TV sets to watch history in the making. In our lifetimes, there may never be another night of baseball like September 28, 2011.
For some of you who will be leaving the page, thanks for participating. And for those of you staying, here's how it all went down:
So let's set it up for you, both the American League (AL) and National League (NL) Wildcards were undecided. The wild card team is the last team from each league to make the playoffs.
In the AL, it was the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays. In the NL, the Atlanta Braves and St. Louis Cardinals. Two teams get in and two teams go home and we thank them for participating.
(Or it was possible we'd have one game playoffs but we won't get into that.)
We begin in Houston with the easiest game of the night. The Cardinals beat the Astros 8-0, which meant the Braves needed to beat the Phillies in order to force a tie. If the Braves lose, they are out.
So here's what all went down and partial credit goes to Sports Illustrated baseball writer Tom Verducci for the times.
At 6:56 p.m. the Braves and Red Sox both led their games by a score of 3-2. The Braves were down to the final out, so close from forcing a one game playoff, but they blew it. The Phillies tie the game and they go to extra innings tied 3-3.
The Red Sox meanwhile are stuck in a rain delay in Baltimore. It was storming and there was lightning so they had to just sit there, wait and watch the Yankees play the Rays.
Down in Tampa, the Yankees held a 7-0 lead going into the 8th inning.
At 7:23 p.m., Evan Longoria hits a 3-run homer to bring the Rays within a run. It was all of a sudden 7-6 Yankees.
7:58 p.m. - The Red Sox and Orioles in Baltimore resume play. Boston clings to a 3-2 lead against Baltimore, knowing that the Rays have tied it up against the Yankees.
8:28 p.m. - The Phillies score a run on the Braves to make it 4-3. If the Braves don't come back to win, it's all over for ATL.
8:59 p.m. - The Red Sox need only one more strike to clinch their game to set up at least a one game playoff (at worst). Jonathan Papelbon, one of the best closers in the game, gives up a game-tying double. Boston 3, Baltimore 3.
9:05 p.m. - They don't. Evan Longoria hits his second home run of the game down the left field line, just over the short fence. The Rays are going to the playoffs. The Red Sox are going home.
Bottom line is the two teams that deserved to make the playoffs made it, and the two teams that played awful in September are not.
Lesson learned here is that it is never over until it's over.
Sounds redundant and simple but it's not. Both Atlanta and Boston had huge leads in the wild card going into September.
The Braves had a 10.5 game lead over the Cardinals in late August and 8.5 in September and blew it. Even worse, the Red Sox had a 9 game lead over Tampa in September and they blew it too.
In the professional sporting world, the word "choke" will be associated with the 2011 versions of the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox.
Brutal if you are a fan if either of those teams. Unbelievable if you are a fan of the Cardinals or Rays.
And just incredible and fascinating to see it unfold for everyone else.
The glory of victory, and the agony of defeat. It doesn't get any better, and it doesn't get any worse.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Chemistry, team chemistry
How can you tell when a team has chemistry? The answer is, they just do.
You can see it, by their body language, the way they interact with each other, slap high fives, joke around, and even stretch.
On the other hand, you can also tell when a team doesn't, by those same elements.
Currently, we have four teams, comprised of players who go to different schools, and I'd say the team chemistry is somewhere in between the two state above. Not as good as it could be, but then again, not as bad as it could be either.
Now how to improve?
Last year, I feel like I was spoiled by the teams we had.
For the first time, students from DeMarillac participated in athletics at St. Mary's and they pretty much fit in from day one.
Most notably, I remember being at a volleyball practice at Chinese Playground (Willie Woo Woo Wong to your young pplz..) with the then 8th grade girls, and watched them mingle and mesh with the four girls from DeMarillac. You would've never guessed that these girls didn't even know each other 10 days ago.
It seemed like they were friends since they were born.
For the guys, I remember the two boys on the basketball team who played with the Red Team, and how they joked around with each other, and poked fun at each other as if they were in the same class.
And that's what it's all about in the end, the friendships and relationships that you make, and the experiences you go through in athletics. Winning is the cherry on top to the friends that you make.
But why do I bring up team chemistry right now? That is because I feel that it is lacking currently in our teams.
Little things like words of encouragement to the boy or girl that you don't know very well that doesn't go to your school goes a long way.
Teaching or showing someone who you are just trying to get to know, how to do something right, something subtle is the first step.
Last season, when I watched our teams, you couldn't tell who went to which school. But this year, whether it's people being shy or scared, you could see the difference. A group huddles here to stretch, while the other huddle over here.
It shouldn't be this way.
When you play on a sports team, one of the hardest things a coach or manager to do is to juggle the personalities. The same can be said for players as we do tend to forget that everybody playing is actually a human being.
If personalities fit well with each other, and everybody on the team is everybody else's best friend, guess what, it's going to be a lot easier to go out there and play relaxed. After all, it's a lot easier making a mistake with a friend of yours next to you than someone you don't know so well.
Right now, we are still very early in the season as the boys and girls on the teams have known each other really for just a few weeks, and even in the few weeks, it's limited time during practice and games.
I hope this post will raise some awareness to coaches and players, and show them that we need to encourage more team camaraderie and togetherness.
Sports at this level is not just about sports, but helping you develop socially, how to make friends and interact, meeting people you don't know and building a relationship, working with them.
St. Mary's is a very small school, and making the jump from a class of 15-20 to a class of a few hundred is going to be very intimidating for some. What better way to start making new friends than here playing sports?
Hopefully by the end of the season, if not earlier, everybody on every team can be each other's BFFL (best friend for life).
You can see it, by their body language, the way they interact with each other, slap high fives, joke around, and even stretch.
On the other hand, you can also tell when a team doesn't, by those same elements.
Currently, we have four teams, comprised of players who go to different schools, and I'd say the team chemistry is somewhere in between the two state above. Not as good as it could be, but then again, not as bad as it could be either.
Now how to improve?
Last year, I feel like I was spoiled by the teams we had.
For the first time, students from DeMarillac participated in athletics at St. Mary's and they pretty much fit in from day one.
Most notably, I remember being at a volleyball practice at Chinese Playground (Willie Woo Woo Wong to your young pplz..) with the then 8th grade girls, and watched them mingle and mesh with the four girls from DeMarillac. You would've never guessed that these girls didn't even know each other 10 days ago.
It seemed like they were friends since they were born.
For the guys, I remember the two boys on the basketball team who played with the Red Team, and how they joked around with each other, and poked fun at each other as if they were in the same class.
And that's what it's all about in the end, the friendships and relationships that you make, and the experiences you go through in athletics. Winning is the cherry on top to the friends that you make.
But why do I bring up team chemistry right now? That is because I feel that it is lacking currently in our teams.
Little things like words of encouragement to the boy or girl that you don't know very well that doesn't go to your school goes a long way.
Teaching or showing someone who you are just trying to get to know, how to do something right, something subtle is the first step.
Last season, when I watched our teams, you couldn't tell who went to which school. But this year, whether it's people being shy or scared, you could see the difference. A group huddles here to stretch, while the other huddle over here.
It shouldn't be this way.
When you play on a sports team, one of the hardest things a coach or manager to do is to juggle the personalities. The same can be said for players as we do tend to forget that everybody playing is actually a human being.
If personalities fit well with each other, and everybody on the team is everybody else's best friend, guess what, it's going to be a lot easier to go out there and play relaxed. After all, it's a lot easier making a mistake with a friend of yours next to you than someone you don't know so well.
Right now, we are still very early in the season as the boys and girls on the teams have known each other really for just a few weeks, and even in the few weeks, it's limited time during practice and games.
I hope this post will raise some awareness to coaches and players, and show them that we need to encourage more team camaraderie and togetherness.
Sports at this level is not just about sports, but helping you develop socially, how to make friends and interact, meeting people you don't know and building a relationship, working with them.
St. Mary's is a very small school, and making the jump from a class of 15-20 to a class of a few hundred is going to be very intimidating for some. What better way to start making new friends than here playing sports?
Hopefully by the end of the season, if not earlier, everybody on every team can be each other's BFFL (best friend for life).
This Date in St. Mary's Athletics History
September 27
- September 27, 2008
- The 8th grade girls (class of 2009) lost their third volleyball game of the season in straight sets 25-11, 25-11.
- The 3rd/4th grade soccer team (now 6th/7th graders) were shut out 5-0.
- September 27, 2009
- The 4th/5th grade girls (now 6th/7th graders) hit 20 in a set for the first time in a volleyball set. They eventually did lose their game in straight sets, 25-20, 25-11.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Monday morning quarterback, giving away prizes
Monday Morning Quarterback
First person to identify who this player is, will receive a special gift I got yesterday from the Raiders game. Please leave your guesses in the comments section.
So...
Here we go onto the current state of St. Mary's Athletics, and before we get started, I am going to add a new feature to the blog called "This Day in St. Mary's Athletics History" which will be updated on days where there is something worthy of looking back upon.
THIS DAY IN ST. MARY'S ATHLETICS HISTORY (September 26)
What an amazing game by the 7th/8th grade soccer team, as they beasted their way to a 9-1 victory in their first actual game of the season.
Huge kudos go to Pablo, Sebastian and of course Eloy for their play. It was evident the way they played, that they all have been playing for years and have truly been gifted with some talent. How far it will get them in this season remains to be seen as soccer is a team sport.
Having such good forwards takes pressure off of players from the past like Brandon K., Hartman and Daniel who are used to carrying heavy loads. Now they don't have as much pressure and can ease their way into the team, which will make them all the more effective as well.
Great start for the team, but it gets harder this Saturday as they play two games in a span of three hours.
The volleyball teams came back down to earth following their week one victories. Both teams had winnable contests but the self inflicted wounds were too much to overcome.
A few things that didn't sit too well with me were that some of the experienced players looked a bit off on Friday night and Saturday morning.
All the players who have previous experience are now in their third year, so playing a game shouldn't be anything new. Unfortunately, some of the girls were battling nerves once again and it looked like they were out there for their first games, which shouldn't be happening.
As for the 5th/6th grade soccer team, it was just a bad game all around. Their offense needs to generate more scoring chances to take pressure off the defense.
Not to compare the defense of this team to the Giants, but the pitchers on the Giants get no help from the hitters and thus lose way too much. Tim Lincecum has a below .500 record this year because the team can't hit.
So this does relate. If the offense doesn't score goals, it becomes a defensive struggle game after game.
Part of the problem is spacing by the midfielders and forwards. If you watch the 7th/8th grade highlights, there are red jerseys everywhere on the field, scattered throughout.
Watch the 5th/6th grade game and it's a scrum of red going after one ball. There isn't much teamwork right now, and part of that is because of the inexperience and lack of fundamentals.
Tomorrow on the blog, I will cover something very important to all four of our teams - team chemistry. Now you don't want to miss that, and of course, why would you want to miss anything on the blog?
And finally...since we played "Find the Noob" yesterday, (see video from yesterday) we will do so again today. See ya pals.
- One who criticizes or passes judgment from a position of hindsight
First person to identify who this player is, will receive a special gift I got yesterday from the Raiders game. Please leave your guesses in the comments section.
So...
Here we go onto the current state of St. Mary's Athletics, and before we get started, I am going to add a new feature to the blog called "This Day in St. Mary's Athletics History" which will be updated on days where there is something worthy of looking back upon.
THIS DAY IN ST. MARY'S ATHLETICS HISTORY (September 26)
- September 26, 2008
- The class of 2009 8th grade girls lost 25-16 in both sets of their second volleyball game ever.
- September 26, 2009
- The class of 2010 8th grade girls won their second volleyball game ever via forfeit.
- The class of 2010 8th grade boys soccer team lost 4-1 in their third game of the year. Brandon scored his first and only goal in the game.
What an amazing game by the 7th/8th grade soccer team, as they beasted their way to a 9-1 victory in their first actual game of the season.
Huge kudos go to Pablo, Sebastian and of course Eloy for their play. It was evident the way they played, that they all have been playing for years and have truly been gifted with some talent. How far it will get them in this season remains to be seen as soccer is a team sport.
Having such good forwards takes pressure off of players from the past like Brandon K., Hartman and Daniel who are used to carrying heavy loads. Now they don't have as much pressure and can ease their way into the team, which will make them all the more effective as well.
Great start for the team, but it gets harder this Saturday as they play two games in a span of three hours.
The volleyball teams came back down to earth following their week one victories. Both teams had winnable contests but the self inflicted wounds were too much to overcome.
A few things that didn't sit too well with me were that some of the experienced players looked a bit off on Friday night and Saturday morning.
All the players who have previous experience are now in their third year, so playing a game shouldn't be anything new. Unfortunately, some of the girls were battling nerves once again and it looked like they were out there for their first games, which shouldn't be happening.
As for the 5th/6th grade soccer team, it was just a bad game all around. Their offense needs to generate more scoring chances to take pressure off the defense.
Not to compare the defense of this team to the Giants, but the pitchers on the Giants get no help from the hitters and thus lose way too much. Tim Lincecum has a below .500 record this year because the team can't hit.
So this does relate. If the offense doesn't score goals, it becomes a defensive struggle game after game.
Part of the problem is spacing by the midfielders and forwards. If you watch the 7th/8th grade highlights, there are red jerseys everywhere on the field, scattered throughout.
Watch the 5th/6th grade game and it's a scrum of red going after one ball. There isn't much teamwork right now, and part of that is because of the inexperience and lack of fundamentals.
Tomorrow on the blog, I will cover something very important to all four of our teams - team chemistry. Now you don't want to miss that, and of course, why would you want to miss anything on the blog?
And finally...since we played "Find the Noob" yesterday, (see video from yesterday) we will do so again today. See ya pals.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)