Next to week 32, which is the last week of our school year and the NJCAA region 24 tournament, this week, week 9, is probably our most anticipated, stressful and worrisome week of the year for our Lake Land College softball players. Some say our NCAA D1 fall scrimmage schedule is tough in itself, our intense practices are hard enough, and the players’ school load and the occasional homesickness is the most stressful. But each of these combined does not equal what is going to happen this week, week 9. This week will combine all that we have learned and done to this point. Here is a list of just some of what is going to happen during this week, week 9.
8 week grade check: Every 4 weeks our players take a grade sheet around to all their instructors to find out what their current grades are. Grades are very important to us here at Lake Land College; the reason players are here is to get an education. Also, eligibility is different from high school. In high school, you may be ineligible due to a poor grade and you take a test and get the grade up and can play again. Well in college if you are ineligible at the end of the semester, you are ineligible for the whole next semester. There is no taking a test or doing extra credit; you can’t play - period. So to make sure our players do well, we have daily study table which is required for all players. But at the eight week grade check, any player with a 3.00 GPA or above is not obligated to attend study tables any more. So you can see why the eight week grade check is so important to our players. On the first grade checks turned in thus far, GPA’s ranged from a 3.2 to a 4.0, so it looks like Coach Birk and I are going to be rather lonely at study tables the second half of the semester.
Scout Days: This week, week 9, of every fall we host two Scout Days. This is where we invite 4-year-college coaches to watch our practices in hopes of getting our players recruited. Last year all our sophomores were recruited through our fall scrimmage schedule (that consisted of mainly NCAA D1 softball programs) and our Scout Days. So as you can imagine, the anticipation of these two days is quite stressful, especially to the upper classmen.
Turkey games: Week 9 is also the start of what we call turkey games. To our team this is civil war; it pits player against player and family against family (the Runde twins). This year Nicole Runde and Kristin Runde have been selected turkey team captains. Along with the coaches, they have a draft and each selects a team. These two teams will then participate in a best-of-three-game series with the losing team fixing Thanksgiving dinner for the winning team the Sunday before Thanksgiving. If you want to see two teams play hard, these would be the games to watch.
As you can see, Week 9 has a lot riding on it for each player. However week 9 also give players their first weekend off since they all arrived here August 21st. Now they are all excited to go home and buy new pants that are a little smaller in the waist. Week 9 is also the final week of our fall outdoor practices, as we move into individuals for the final eight weeks. Besides the incredibly hard work our team has put in the classroom, the weight room and on the field, what I will remember most is the camaraderie and close friendships that have built up over this past eight weeks and the coming together of the 2009/2010 Lake Land College Softball Team.
Always Play to Win,
No comments:
Post a Comment