CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Heading into the NCAA Tournament, seniors Casey Howard and Rae Everson have graciously decided to detail some of their journey as they venture into the national spotlight. Together, the two standout seniors have opted to write about their adventures and share them with the Delaware faithful as the field hockey team heads into the NCAA Tournament...

It was nice to sleep in today… if you consider sleeping until 9 a.m. sleeping in!  We woke up for a team breakfast only to find that there was one waffle maker, two kinds of bagels, and a variety of breakfast sandwiches, which makes it a little interesting with 26 hungry women.

After we enjoyed breakfast, we each broke off to “study” for the next few hours prior to practice. When we say “study,” that means a few take naps, others watch TV, and maybe a handful study… just kidding Coach Miller :-). We all studied at some point within the designated study hours.

Following study hours, we left for practice around 1:30 p.m. We were really excited about getting the chance to step out on the field where our first NCAA match will be taking place!  Once again, as soon as we stepped out onto the turf…guess what happened?!  It started raining. Nothing like the rain in a different state! But, like always, we remained focused and determined on the tasks set before us.

Practice ran very smoothly and was very efficient considering that the NCAA only allots us an hour and 15 minutes to practice. The thought seeped into our heads that this could potentially be our last practice even with a win tomorrow, so we were motivated to practice every minute to the best of our ability.

Following practice, we returned to the hotel to shower and get ready for pregame dinner.  We arrived at Ragazzi’s Italian Restaurant around 6 p.m. As we enjoyed our meals, guess who walked in… Michigan State. Nothing like sharing a meal with the enemy! Just kidding! Dinner ended without incident, and everyone left satisfied.

Upon arriving back at the hotel, we met to go over the scouting report for tomorrow’s game. This is a time where we draw out the game plan for the upcoming contest, share thoughts, and begin our mental imagery. The last few prior to bed checks were spent “studying” again, blogging :-), watching game tapes, and enjoying just being a team.  Once again… good night from Charlottesville!!  Go Blue Hens… DO WORK!!

-Casey & Rae

November 12 Edition

November 11 Edition