Sunday, March 10 we had a complete day off from training. We woke up, ate breakfast, had a few hours off to relax, ate lunch, then loaded the bus and headed to a flea market that was 20 minutes away. We had an hour to walk around and buy any cheap souvenirs we liked. There were all sorts of jewelry, bags, clothing, house ware and sunglasses lying out to be bought. Although many people think “bargaining” when you say flea markets, the venders were not very willing to lower the prices. ... Read More

Saturday was GAME DAY again! We had our second match against Germany at noon. The first half was pretty rough. I don’t think we were expecting such a great difference between the Norwegian speed of play and the German style. With a few technical break downs we were down 2-0 before we even knew it. One of our defenders went down with a knee injury, so she was out for the rest of the game. About 40 minutes into the first half another one of our defenders fouled a German in the box while she was on a break way and got issued a red card. So, since it was a red card, we had to play down a man for the rest of the game and they received a penalty kick and they scored - we were down 3-0 at half. To say the least, Germany out played us in the first. ... Read More

Thursday, March 7th was our first game day! We played Norway at 3 p.m. for our first match. That morning we had the choice to go to breakfast from 8-9 a.m., or skip it, sleep in and just go to our pregame meal at 11 a.m. We then loaded up the gear and headed back to the meal room for our pre game talk. ... Read More

The next morning we woke up and went down to breakfast. As we were all at our round tables eating and socializing, Elysia came around with a sheet of paper and asked each one of us how we were feeling and how we slept that night. Many girls had issues falling asleep or sleeping in general and some others weren’t feeling their normal selves. She reported her sheet to our head coach who then takes it into consideration for training and our plan for the day. ... Read More

Around 12:00 p.m. Saturday, March 2 we landed at the Murcia airport. We deplaned, went through the very small airport to customs and then proceeded to baggage claim where there was only one carousel. We all were shocked when we grabbed the last bag and noticed that many girls didn’t have their luggage. US Soccer travels with around 30 bags alone, which include: uniforms, balls, training room equipment, etc. Overall, 34 bags were missing; 10 girls didn’t have their luggage, and the rest was training equipment. Unfortunately, nine days before the same thing happened to the U-23 Women’s National Team and it is just do to the lack of space on the small aircraft. ... Read More

Please bear with me Hokie fans since this is my very first blog ever! ... Read More

Today we kick off our 2012 season with a home opener against UNC Wilmington. This is a very important game for our team, as it will set the tone for our season. For us seniors (myself, Kelly Conheeney, Amanda Gerhard, Kelsey Mitchell, and Julia Goldsworthy) it is the start to our last season as a member of the Virginia Tech soccer team. ... Read More

This past weekend we went on our annual preseason team-bonding trip. This past Friday the coaches informed us that we were going camping for the day/night on Saturday. Needless to say some were a little more excited and willing than others at the thought of camping. I personally couldn’t wait to see how we faired in the woods, especially Jazmine Reeves and Julia Goldsworthy. Our team was split up into 3 different “pods” for the trip. Each pod was responsible for different tasks including clean up, dinner and breakfast. ... Read More

Tonight we had our first scrimmage of the season against James Madison University! This always sort of signifies the true start to our games and really getting our season under way. It’s also a great time to see where our team stands against a strong in-state opponent such as JMU. ... Read More

With the scrimmage tonight against James Madison, what are you looking forward to most about getting on the field with an outside opponent? ... Read More

Today marks the last two-a-day for the season…at least for what is on the schedule! As a senior this will be our last one ever, the first of many lasts. I have mixed emotions because while two-a-days may not be the most flattering idea, it also means our last preseason with this team. But, I know we are not even thinking about the end to any of this because I know this team has SO much to look forward to for the season. ... Read More

While everyone else continues to vacation, we have returned to Blacksburg Tuesday, July 31^st for the 2012 season. After a successful season in 2011, making it all the way to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, we are looking to build off of that success. ... Read More