This weekend's event in Chicago will have an interesting new addition to the doubles competition. There will be an all-women's 4 vs 4 exhibition/tournament. I am very excited to be a part of this new venture.
There will be 4 teams consisting of 4 players that will compete. If you are in the Chicago area and are planning to come to the tournament, the first round of 4s play will begin on Saturday. We will play one match and the winners will then compete against each other before the women's doubles Final on Sunday.
We are hoping that it will be a great success. This would be very important for our sport. If it succeeds, it will create more opportunity for female volleyball players. Many times great indoor players come out to the beach and get intimidated because it is so different from the indoor game. It takes literally months to get used to all the external factors like the sand, the wind, only having one teammate, and so forth. The 4s game would be an easier transition because it more closely resembles the indoor game.
Chicago will be a test market. If it gets a really good response, hopefully there will be more competitions. It would be fantastic if it led to a rise in the 4s game and brought it back to the popularity that it was at years ago.
Here is a little inside information on my team. Our setter is Brooke Hanson (my doubles partner), our middle blocker is Dianne DeNecochea, and Angela Lewis and I will play the outside positions. I am really looking forward to competing alongside these great players!
The doubles tournament starts Friday at North Avenue Beach in Chicago. Play will continue Saturday and Sunday. Check out http://www.avp.com/ for more info.
I hope to see you at the beach!
Angie
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Seaside Heights Recap - JULY 9, 2007
Seaside Heights turned out to be a great tournament with all things considered. We were back on a real beach with deep sand, had a true on-shore (sometimes off-shore) breeze, and amazing fans that were really excited to have us back.
I noticed a few things about Jersey that are very interesting to me. First, you are charged to do everything from accessing the beach to showering off after leaving the beach. I was cracking up listening to the announcements on the boardwalk while we were playing, "there are showers located at ??? for just $3!" The boardwalk is always a source of entertainment. It is jam-packed with vacationers and a sure-thing to see something interesting. From the arcades to the amusement rides to the bars, there is always something to see.
This year, the tournament was north of all the rides and life of the boardwalk. It was a great location with a steady flow of people coming in and out. The weather was just short of fantastic with a swirly breeze on Friday. Saturday and Sunday were amazing.
We started our play on Friday a little shaky. We did not play our best or even close to it. In fact, we down right stunk on Friday. Thankfully the tournaments are double elimination so we were fortunate enough to have another chance on Saturday. Our first match on Friday was against Chrissy Zartman and Tiffany Rodriguez. For those of you that do not know who Chrissy is, she is a young rookie out of UCLA that is 5'3 and good! She is sweet as can be AND is very talented. It is deceiving to play against her because your first thought is that you do not want to hurt her but then she comes up with some great dig and then you think, "Ok! You asked for it!" We learned that the first time we played her when the first game score was 31-29. This tournament we knew better, so we did not hold back. We won in 2 games 21-13, 21-13.
Our next match was against Ivy/Lowe who have turned out to be our season rivals. It was the 6th time we have played them. We were not present in this match. Not to take anything away from them, as they played great, but we were not there. That was our last match of the day on Friday. We went to dinner and regrouped, getting ready for Saturday.
Our first match on Saturday morning was in the stadium against Angela Knopf and Katie Mintz. They played us tough in the first game. We had a big come-from-behind victory in game 1. We were down 11-15, but then went on a scoring run and finished out the game winning 21-18. I do not remember many details like how we got down that much, but I do remember that once we 'decided' that we were winning, it was over. We played with a different determination and confidence than the first 11 points we earned. That play put us in the groove for the rest of our tournament. We won the next game 21-15 and secured 13th place.
Our next match was against Brittany Hochevar and Kaeo Burdine. We were on an outer court with a bit of wind and took full advantage. We dominated in this match with tough serving and smart defensive plays. We won convincingly 21-14, 21-14 putting us in 9th place.
Because we had lost our second round match, we were in the unfortunate position of matching up against the number 4 seeded team of DeNecochea/Fontana. This was a heart-breaker to lose, especially with the battle we put forth. The scores were 27-29, 24-26 in a 1:06 long match. That is very long for a two set match. We had an early lead, but could not keep it. We traded sideouts for awhile, then each team would get the advantage. We had a few swings for the game, but didn't earn the point. Game two we were down 10-4, but made a quick turn-around and got right back into the game. The disappointing thing is that we could have won. The really exciting thing is that we are neck and neck with the best teams on our tour.
Now we go to Rio where we will compete for a medal in the Pan Ams. That will be a great prepping ground for the rest of the season. The remaining AVP events are all double points and more prize money. We will come back from Brazil ready to play our best ball of the year and finish with the exclamation point!
It's all a journey and I am enjoying every step of it. I am researching the links for the Pan Am Games. When I find them, I will post them on my website. Follow our progress and feel free to send me messages!
All my best and GO USA!
Angie
I noticed a few things about Jersey that are very interesting to me. First, you are charged to do everything from accessing the beach to showering off after leaving the beach. I was cracking up listening to the announcements on the boardwalk while we were playing, "there are showers located at ??? for just $3!" The boardwalk is always a source of entertainment. It is jam-packed with vacationers and a sure-thing to see something interesting. From the arcades to the amusement rides to the bars, there is always something to see.
This year, the tournament was north of all the rides and life of the boardwalk. It was a great location with a steady flow of people coming in and out. The weather was just short of fantastic with a swirly breeze on Friday. Saturday and Sunday were amazing.
We started our play on Friday a little shaky. We did not play our best or even close to it. In fact, we down right stunk on Friday. Thankfully the tournaments are double elimination so we were fortunate enough to have another chance on Saturday. Our first match on Friday was against Chrissy Zartman and Tiffany Rodriguez. For those of you that do not know who Chrissy is, she is a young rookie out of UCLA that is 5'3 and good! She is sweet as can be AND is very talented. It is deceiving to play against her because your first thought is that you do not want to hurt her but then she comes up with some great dig and then you think, "Ok! You asked for it!" We learned that the first time we played her when the first game score was 31-29. This tournament we knew better, so we did not hold back. We won in 2 games 21-13, 21-13.
Our next match was against Ivy/Lowe who have turned out to be our season rivals. It was the 6th time we have played them. We were not present in this match. Not to take anything away from them, as they played great, but we were not there. That was our last match of the day on Friday. We went to dinner and regrouped, getting ready for Saturday.
Our first match on Saturday morning was in the stadium against Angela Knopf and Katie Mintz. They played us tough in the first game. We had a big come-from-behind victory in game 1. We were down 11-15, but then went on a scoring run and finished out the game winning 21-18. I do not remember many details like how we got down that much, but I do remember that once we 'decided' that we were winning, it was over. We played with a different determination and confidence than the first 11 points we earned. That play put us in the groove for the rest of our tournament. We won the next game 21-15 and secured 13th place.
Our next match was against Brittany Hochevar and Kaeo Burdine. We were on an outer court with a bit of wind and took full advantage. We dominated in this match with tough serving and smart defensive plays. We won convincingly 21-14, 21-14 putting us in 9th place.
Because we had lost our second round match, we were in the unfortunate position of matching up against the number 4 seeded team of DeNecochea/Fontana. This was a heart-breaker to lose, especially with the battle we put forth. The scores were 27-29, 24-26 in a 1:06 long match. That is very long for a two set match. We had an early lead, but could not keep it. We traded sideouts for awhile, then each team would get the advantage. We had a few swings for the game, but didn't earn the point. Game two we were down 10-4, but made a quick turn-around and got right back into the game. The disappointing thing is that we could have won. The really exciting thing is that we are neck and neck with the best teams on our tour.
Now we go to Rio where we will compete for a medal in the Pan Ams. That will be a great prepping ground for the rest of the season. The remaining AVP events are all double points and more prize money. We will come back from Brazil ready to play our best ball of the year and finish with the exclamation point!
It's all a journey and I am enjoying every step of it. I am researching the links for the Pan Am Games. When I find them, I will post them on my website. Follow our progress and feel free to send me messages!
All my best and GO USA!
Angie
Back to Civilian Life - THURSDAY - JULY 5, 2007
I am sitting in a Courtyard by Marriott Hotel business center writing right now. My 4th of July was spent flying from LA to New Jersey. I was picked up from the airport by my good friend, Vito, who runs the awesome, women-only athletic center, Aurora Fitness in Richfield, New Jersey. Vito took me to dinner and today will drive me down to Seaside Heights for our tournament.
We are finally back on a beach after playing so many parking lot events in a row. Our bodies will be happy again!
This has been a tough week for me to mentally get ready for this event. I returned from Kosovo where I had a life-changing experience. The reality of being home after that trip was tough. It was such an emotional time and to be brought back to preparing for an event seemed trivial. I worked through it the best way I know how: focusing on one thing at a time. Now that I am here in Jersey, I am excited to get back on the court and compete. This is a good lead into the Pan Am Games where we hope to bring home a medal. I leave straight from Jersey and will go to Washington for 2 days before leaving for Rio. Three weeks on the road, but the time will fly by.
I am trying to track down the website where you can follow our progress at the games. Once I find it, I will post it here and also on my website. I will make my best attempt at giving you a tournament recap before I leave, as well.
That is all for now. I have to go pack and get ready for the drive down to Seaside. I hope you all had a very happy and safe 4th of July.
Angie
We are finally back on a beach after playing so many parking lot events in a row. Our bodies will be happy again!
This has been a tough week for me to mentally get ready for this event. I returned from Kosovo where I had a life-changing experience. The reality of being home after that trip was tough. It was such an emotional time and to be brought back to preparing for an event seemed trivial. I worked through it the best way I know how: focusing on one thing at a time. Now that I am here in Jersey, I am excited to get back on the court and compete. This is a good lead into the Pan Am Games where we hope to bring home a medal. I leave straight from Jersey and will go to Washington for 2 days before leaving for Rio. Three weeks on the road, but the time will fly by.
I am trying to track down the website where you can follow our progress at the games. Once I find it, I will post it here and also on my website. I will make my best attempt at giving you a tournament recap before I leave, as well.
That is all for now. I have to go pack and get ready for the drive down to Seaside. I hope you all had a very happy and safe 4th of July.
Angie
Kosovo - Day 3 - SATURDAY - JUNE 23, 2007
I had every intention of writing in my blog every day while on the trip, but obviously I failed miserably. I did take notes so that I could write about all the details without missing anything.
First I need to finish my last blog entry. I will do that right now. (The computer was set all in German, so I had no idea what I was doing.) I think the last thing I talked about was the NATO base and Hans and Ty doing most of the playing. Well after we played we wanted to track down more Americans, so we went to the American bar. There were only a few people in the bar until the Irish soldiers got kicked out of their own bar and made way to the American bar! They were CRAZY!!! Not to mention that they told us they just returned from a 4 month long assignment and were going to tear it up. They were showering Jen and me with attention. They were picking us up and swinging us around, flexing their muscles for us... we laughed the whole time. One picked me up and started twirling in circles as fast as he could while my feet were knocking over every glass, beer bottle, and table in sight! That was when we decided it might be a good time for us to leave. We made our way back to Bondsteel for a late night dinner and then bed.
Now for Day 3. Jen and I had been 'hinting' (really I mean down right begging!) for a ride in the Blackhawks. Our request was working its way up to the top to see if it would be allowed so we had set up a tour with all the pilots of the helicopters. We did not get a ride, but we did get the most extensive, hands-on tour of the birds that we ever could have asked for. The pilots were extremely disappointed that they could not take us up, but they gave us an amazing tour of their aircraft. We started at the Blackhawks. I jumped into the pilots seat and was given the full rundown on how to fly it, what all the gadgets do, etc. It was very impressive. The pilots were so nice to us and spent a fair bit of time telling us all about their birds.
We left there and visited the Apaches. Once again, I jumped into the pilot seat and was given an extensive tour of all the components on the Apache. I had the helmet with the night vision on, I was shown how to lock in on targets, fire the guns, and so so much more. It was amazing. After our visits there, we met up with the Med-Evac pilots and crew. They showed us their Blackhawk and all the medical equipment on board. We talked with them for a bit but then had to leave to get ready for our exhibition.
We had a great turn out at Bondsteel. We started with a co-ed exhibition of Hans/Jen versus Ty/me. Unfortunately, Hans and Jen won, but I do believe there will be a rematch in the works. Ty and I just need a little practice together. After that game, Jen and I sided-out versus all the troops that wanted to play. Hans and Ty made rounds visiting with people and also taking over the role of announcer. They gave an amusing play-by-play and kept things moving along. We had a competition to 11 points. If they scored a point on us, they got to stay on the court. If we sided-out, they had to rotate. We played for awhile before we got our winners, but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Once that was finished, everyone that still wanted to play jumped on the court with Hans and Ty and got to play along-side them. We had to wrap things up after a few hours in order to get over to the radio station where we recorded some public service announcements. We had a really good time in the recording studio doing these. Jen started quoting a Saturday Night Live skit that had me dying laughing. Of course I went along with it. After that we went back and ordered Thai food with a few of the troops. We had a great time telling and listening to stories.
This trip has had such a profound effect on me. It is really hard to convey my thoughts and feelings so that in reading this you truly understand what this trip has meant to me. It is a huge eye-opener to be on base and see the daily life of what our troops go through. They are not there for 2 and a half days. They are there for 11 months. 11 months without their families, friends, and all the luxuries that we have living here in the States. They are lonely and bored. The thanks that we received was so over-whelming. I had no idea that we would or could make such a positive difference for them. Some of the emails that I got put me in tears. I found it very difficult to leave. Saying goodbye was tough because I wanted to give so much more. I am already trying to organize my next visit overseas.
I ask that you all keep our troops all over the world in your thoughts and prayers. Many people do not know that we still have a presence in Kosovo, but we do. Please do not forget them. I send all my love to Bondsteel in Kosovo and thank every one of them for their service to our great country.
Peace and love,
Angie
First I need to finish my last blog entry. I will do that right now. (The computer was set all in German, so I had no idea what I was doing.) I think the last thing I talked about was the NATO base and Hans and Ty doing most of the playing. Well after we played we wanted to track down more Americans, so we went to the American bar. There were only a few people in the bar until the Irish soldiers got kicked out of their own bar and made way to the American bar! They were CRAZY!!! Not to mention that they told us they just returned from a 4 month long assignment and were going to tear it up. They were showering Jen and me with attention. They were picking us up and swinging us around, flexing their muscles for us... we laughed the whole time. One picked me up and started twirling in circles as fast as he could while my feet were knocking over every glass, beer bottle, and table in sight! That was when we decided it might be a good time for us to leave. We made our way back to Bondsteel for a late night dinner and then bed.
Now for Day 3. Jen and I had been 'hinting' (really I mean down right begging!) for a ride in the Blackhawks. Our request was working its way up to the top to see if it would be allowed so we had set up a tour with all the pilots of the helicopters. We did not get a ride, but we did get the most extensive, hands-on tour of the birds that we ever could have asked for. The pilots were extremely disappointed that they could not take us up, but they gave us an amazing tour of their aircraft. We started at the Blackhawks. I jumped into the pilots seat and was given the full rundown on how to fly it, what all the gadgets do, etc. It was very impressive. The pilots were so nice to us and spent a fair bit of time telling us all about their birds.
We left there and visited the Apaches. Once again, I jumped into the pilot seat and was given an extensive tour of all the components on the Apache. I had the helmet with the night vision on, I was shown how to lock in on targets, fire the guns, and so so much more. It was amazing. After our visits there, we met up with the Med-Evac pilots and crew. They showed us their Blackhawk and all the medical equipment on board. We talked with them for a bit but then had to leave to get ready for our exhibition.
We had a great turn out at Bondsteel. We started with a co-ed exhibition of Hans/Jen versus Ty/me. Unfortunately, Hans and Jen won, but I do believe there will be a rematch in the works. Ty and I just need a little practice together. After that game, Jen and I sided-out versus all the troops that wanted to play. Hans and Ty made rounds visiting with people and also taking over the role of announcer. They gave an amusing play-by-play and kept things moving along. We had a competition to 11 points. If they scored a point on us, they got to stay on the court. If we sided-out, they had to rotate. We played for awhile before we got our winners, but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
Once that was finished, everyone that still wanted to play jumped on the court with Hans and Ty and got to play along-side them. We had to wrap things up after a few hours in order to get over to the radio station where we recorded some public service announcements. We had a really good time in the recording studio doing these. Jen started quoting a Saturday Night Live skit that had me dying laughing. Of course I went along with it. After that we went back and ordered Thai food with a few of the troops. We had a great time telling and listening to stories.
This trip has had such a profound effect on me. It is really hard to convey my thoughts and feelings so that in reading this you truly understand what this trip has meant to me. It is a huge eye-opener to be on base and see the daily life of what our troops go through. They are not there for 2 and a half days. They are there for 11 months. 11 months without their families, friends, and all the luxuries that we have living here in the States. They are lonely and bored. The thanks that we received was so over-whelming. I had no idea that we would or could make such a positive difference for them. Some of the emails that I got put me in tears. I found it very difficult to leave. Saying goodbye was tough because I wanted to give so much more. I am already trying to organize my next visit overseas.
I ask that you all keep our troops all over the world in your thoughts and prayers. Many people do not know that we still have a presence in Kosovo, but we do. Please do not forget them. I send all my love to Bondsteel in Kosovo and thank every one of them for their service to our great country.
Peace and love,
Angie
KFOR - Kosovo Force - Day 1 - THURSDAY - JUNE 21, 2007
Yesterday may have been one of the greatest days in my life. We visited with soldiers all day. I woke up at 7AM for a quick workout before breakfast. After that, we met with troops on base working on the Hum-Vees. We chatted with them for a bit and took some pictures. Then we left for the day to visit the troops that are stationed out for patrol across Kosovo. These guys sleep in tents for weeks at a time. It is mosquito infested, hot, and boring for them. There is not much going on in the region, which is fantastic, but these guys are bored and homesick. Our first stop was at a site close to a small town. It did not take long to get there. Most of the men were sleeping because they had just finished a night shift. We did not stay long here. We signed some autographs, took pictures, and shook hands. They were tired and the day was heating up. We said goodbye and moved on to the next site.
The next one was very interesting. It is located far out in the middle of what seems like nowhere. These guys were a little more alert when we arrived so we stayed a bit longer. I talked sports with a few of the guys and really had a chance to connect with them. Meanwhile, inside the tent the medic was giving Jen an IV. I am not sure if he needed more practice or if he just thought she was a pretty girl in need of some extra electrolytes. We visited and learned more about their life there while this was happening. We signed autographs and then took them out to play a little volleyball game that we call "ASS". Everyone stands in a circle and if the ball comes to you and you screw up the play, you get a letter. The first one out has to stand against the wall while the others get to throw the ball at them. It was really funny playing this with these guys. They were so into it. When we finally had our "ASS", they lined him up against the tent and then they had me spike a ball at his back! Of course, I crept in so I wouldn't miss. We all had a good laugh and then we had to go. The appreciation that they had for us was overwhelming. It is an incredible feeling. I wish we could have stayed longer.
We then drove by a Catholic Church where Mother Teresa got her calling. There is a famous statue of the Black Madonna in the church. The story is that the statue was white, but one day, overnight, she turned black. It is known to be a place of miracles. The views from the church are incredible. The countryside is stunning. We took more pictures then headed to lunch.
Of course no one we were with can read any Albanian, so the menu was pointless. We did the best we could to order something we wanted to eat. I was safe ordering chicken breast, while some of the others ordered steak and were quite positive that it was not cow. I really don't need to know what it was.
After lunch we visited the NATO base for the volleyball exhibition. Unfortunately, the courts were not taken care of and were as hard as concrete. We waited for 45 minutes while they attempted to improve the court. It was good enough, so we started to play around with the troops. There were only about 8 participants. Most were from other countries. We had a good time playing with them. Hans and Ty did most of the playing because they seemed less phased by the hard surface than both Jen and me.
The next one was very interesting. It is located far out in the middle of what seems like nowhere. These guys were a little more alert when we arrived so we stayed a bit longer. I talked sports with a few of the guys and really had a chance to connect with them. Meanwhile, inside the tent the medic was giving Jen an IV. I am not sure if he needed more practice or if he just thought she was a pretty girl in need of some extra electrolytes. We visited and learned more about their life there while this was happening. We signed autographs and then took them out to play a little volleyball game that we call "ASS". Everyone stands in a circle and if the ball comes to you and you screw up the play, you get a letter. The first one out has to stand against the wall while the others get to throw the ball at them. It was really funny playing this with these guys. They were so into it. When we finally had our "ASS", they lined him up against the tent and then they had me spike a ball at his back! Of course, I crept in so I wouldn't miss. We all had a good laugh and then we had to go. The appreciation that they had for us was overwhelming. It is an incredible feeling. I wish we could have stayed longer.
We then drove by a Catholic Church where Mother Teresa got her calling. There is a famous statue of the Black Madonna in the church. The story is that the statue was white, but one day, overnight, she turned black. It is known to be a place of miracles. The views from the church are incredible. The countryside is stunning. We took more pictures then headed to lunch.
Of course no one we were with can read any Albanian, so the menu was pointless. We did the best we could to order something we wanted to eat. I was safe ordering chicken breast, while some of the others ordered steak and were quite positive that it was not cow. I really don't need to know what it was.
After lunch we visited the NATO base for the volleyball exhibition. Unfortunately, the courts were not taken care of and were as hard as concrete. We waited for 45 minutes while they attempted to improve the court. It was good enough, so we started to play around with the troops. There were only about 8 participants. Most were from other countries. We had a good time playing with them. Hans and Ty did most of the playing because they seemed less phased by the hard surface than both Jen and me.
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