When I came to UConn, I didn’t really know what to expect. I had heard horror stories from my friends (who play at other schools) over the summer about bad roommates, the freshman fifteen, and unbearable workouts.. all of which I thought I could handle; but when I arrived on campus and listened to my new teammates talk about 150’s, threats of 6 AM workouts, hours of homework, sweltering classrooms, and, still, the freshman fifteen, I wasn’t so sure if I could handle it anymore. During the first week of classes I got lost on the way to, and in turn, was late to, two classes. That same week, I accidentally skipped one class, so, I started to panic. To put my mind at ease, I journeyed, with another freshman teammate of mine, to our coach’s office to have a nice, relaxing chat. Little did I know that when I got there, she would make me take down my hair from the way that I always wear it (a big obnoxious bun on the top/side of my head) and make it more “normal.” Now, to you this might not seem like a big deal, but on top of the stress from new classes, a new campus, trying to make new friends, being away from my family and friends, and thinking about the testing that is rumored to have come close to taking the lives of past players, it was a big deal. Needless to say, the first couple of days, maybe even weeks, were kind of tough, but once I got into the swing-of-things, everything got a lot better. I’ve made it through testing, the workouts, the practices, fall ball, and an entire semester of classes and I’m still alive, my clothes still fit, and I’m not on academic probation… so I guess I didn’t do too badly.
When it comes to second semester and the season, all I have to say is that it has started out very well and I’m really excited. We all tested in, hit our weights and, again, didn’t die from the running. We started the day today (the day of our first preseason practice) in a P/C meeting with Coach Yamaguchi in a very good place, which was surrounded by donuts and bagels. Our hour of hitting, rumored to, in previous years, drag on for days, flew by and our defense looked, in my opinion, better than ever. Everyone worked hard and went “all-out” and I think there was even a little bloodshed (gotta love diving on turf!).
I’m looking forward to watching everyone grow as players, people, and a team over the next few weeks of preseason. Our fall season, during which 13 of the 16 players earned homeruns, anticipates a lot of great things and great wins. I’m excited for the season and our chance to show the school, our fans, and our competitors what the new UConn softball team is capable of.
Ps… GO WHITE TEAM!
2014 UConn Softball Blog 