SPRING BREAK 2010!!
During my Spanish class last week, I saw one of my classmate’s “Spring Break” checklist. “Weird,” I thought. “I’m making one too!” With subtle differences….
Hers: Swimsuit, aloe, eyeliner, blender, cash, Ipod
Mine: dri fits, sliders, cleats, ear warmers, eye black, Ipod
Well, close enough. Guess everyone has their own opinion of what constitutes a great Senior year Spring Break.
Vs. LOYOLA
In 2009, we scraped by the Ramblers by one run in extra innings, so we knew they were going to have it out for us on their turf- (pun intended). But our offense was on fire that night! The ball must have looked like a beach ball to Mer and Hollie, who were roping everything they put their bat on, which is always good news for Z and me. If you can find a way to get on, they’ll find a way to get you in. And props to Z- they had the funkiest shift on her- the second baseman could shake hands with the short stop and the third baseman was so close she could tell what kind of gum Z was chewing. But, no surprise, in true Z fashion, she still found ways to get on base, one time by hitting a triple over their naïve heads.
*NOTE: Shallow playing outfielders only taunt her. So where do you play this girl?! Who knows. I’m just glad she’s on my team.
The second game was déjà vu. That’s what so great about this team- we know there’s no roll-over performances. It doesn’t matter if we scored 2 or 200 runs in the first game, come the next one, we have to start from scratch. During the break between games, we made an informal goal to top ourselves and get even more hits the next game, a stat which ended up being one our best outings of the season. {One inning Hol, Mer, Kel, Jess and Aud all switched places with each other on 2nd, spotting us enough insurance runs to close the door.}
In the top of the 7th, it was already too late to mercy rule them, but we weren’t done yet. I was on first base when Mer hit yet another bomb. Now I ALWAYS tag up on balls I think are out of the park, because 1) being superstitious, I don’t want to jinx it. *cough, JACKIE TAKE NOTES, cough*
2) You never want to assume it’s a HR and start trotting, only to have an outfielder snag it & risk getting picked off when you could have tagged up and advanced
3) Irreparable damage to your self-esteem if Coach Sullivan sees your horrible base running when she watches the games on film
But as soon as Mer hit that ball, I actually said out loud “Whoa,” and started trotting. As far as I know, that ball is now a souvenir for the apartment building across the street. When the inning was over, I ran out laughing to our managers Josh and Willie behind the center field fence, asking “Did you see that shot!?!” Even a couple of Loyola’s fans were chuckling, nodding their heads in amazement- and of course, RESPECT.
Ash Bob came in to close in the 6th/ 7th to close and did just that. If you don’t know Ash, her pitches dive, sink, float, slice, rise, and fall off the table- anything but come in smooth. At practice, she’s the hardest pitcher to bunt off of. I’m not kidding-
***flashback (I promise this has relevance) Last fall while we did a short game drill during practice. Me vs. Ash. I came up with a runner on 3rd, down by one. I battled like crazy and eventually worked my way back from 0-2 to a full count. I thought “I got her, this next pitch is mine.” Umm, yea, I never even saw the next pitch. It looked like it was headed for my ear at 90 mph, and I dove out of the way, hitting the ground just in time to see the ball drift into Audrey’s mitt. Coach teased me later saying I didn’t hit anything but the deck. ***
Now, Loyola has a lot of short game-slaps, bunts, and taps- and they rely on their speed and element of surprise. Someone should have told them you can’t bunt a ball you can’t track. Ash’s pitches were just dancing, confusing the lefties and spinning the righties like tops. My favorite part of the night: This big right hander hits a lazy pop up to Ash, but the umpire calls and illegal pitch. Ash wasn’t phased. I thought “Oh Lord…I know that look.” As the Loyola girl was taking dry swings, I was laughing, thinking “Yea, you think you got it all figured out.” Loyola’s dugout got all fired up about the umpire’s call for a good, oh, two seconds- until Ash struck her out. –Yet another girl I’m glad is on our side.
Yes, the games were freezing. Yes, it rained too. And yes, I should be used to it. But all the shivering and soggy cleats are worth it for two reasons: Wins on the road and amazing Chicago pizza waiting for you on the bus.
MICHIGAN
We were incredibly psyched to play this weekend, opening conference play against the only Big Ten team ranked above us. The only thing standing between us and the match up? A 6 hour bus ride.
While plane rides may cut time in half, I think I speak for the team when I say bus rides are where it’s at. Not only can you carry water bottles without getting tackled by some rent-a-cop with a laminated badge, but you also don’t have to stand behind people who sprint to the “Expert traveler” line only to s-l-o-w-l-y take off their watches, laptop, laptop charger, tripod, earrings, pocket change, studded belts and thigh high boots. And when they finally finish unloading, the 87 year old Wal-Mart greeter turned TSA agent working the x-ray machine will move YOURS TRULY to the back of another line because my book bag’s keychain looks suspicious. Yea, IT HAPPENED. But am I bitter? ;)
(I think I can actually feel myself being put on the “no-fly list” as we speak.) Whatever.
But I digress….
A bus ride means we get to watch all the DVDs we want. This week’s showings: The Blind Side, Cool Runnings, School of Rock, and 17 Again.
As far as the game goes, we were just outhit. Their bats showed up and ours didn’t. One of their batters fouled off a ball onto their indoor football field., probably 300 ft away and two more hit HRs through the field's treeline. Acon asked me, "You think if I had a better jump, I could have robbed that homer?" I told her "Even if you were a lumberjack, you couldn't have robbed that homer."
Clearly not a way you want to start out your opener, but we never thought we weren’t in that game for a minute.
Sunday’s game was canceled for rain, but not from a lack of trying. We warmed up- twice in fact, but the rain just didn’t let up.
Which can only mean one thing: Bad news for Indiana State.
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