Below is the Final installment of the Hawks Hoop Blog, a monthly update from senior guard MaryLynne Schaefer.
All Good Things Come to an End...
Hello Hawk Fans,
Let me begin this note by thanking all of you for the support that you’ve shown to me and the team these last four years. Everyone always claims that their fans are better than another school’s fans, but it is true when you think of the fans here at Hartford. Through wins and losses you all have continued to support us and I truly appreciate it. Many of you have made these last four years quite enjoyable and on behalf of Katie, Lisa and I, we thank you.
Now I know all of you were looking forward to us winning the conference and making it back to the tournament--believe me I was looking forward to it as well. As sad as it is, you have to give credit where credit should be given and Vermont came into the tournament ready to play. They worked to do the things that they needed to win and they did just that.
As disappointing as it was to lose and see my (college) career end, I will never forget the people that I met and the memories that I made along the way. Winning three regular season championships, two tournament championships and playing in four post seasons (oh and beating Duke) is something that I could only have imagined when growing up. Don’t get me wrong I came here to win championships and play in the post season, but as I have looked back on it over these past couple days it’s hard to believe the things that Katie, Lisa, and I were a part of.
So as the final days of college get closer and closer, and the real world gets just as close, I leave you all with this final thought ... ?Find something that you love to do and do it as often as you can. Enjoy the people, the moment and have no regrets along the way because before you know it, it’s all over and you are only left with the memories.’
Continue to be the fans and great supporters that you are and I look forward to seeing you all when I make a visit back to a game (or two) next season.
Till next time...
ML
Championship Time is Right Around the Corner...
Hello Hawk Fans!
I hope this note fines you all doing well. With two games left in the regular season I am sure many of you are looking forward to the upcoming conference tournament as much as I am, but let's not get too far ahead of ourselves. After falling to both Marist and Boston University at home in the past two weeks it brought the end of a long streak of home wins. However, like any streak it is eventually going to end and that just means a new one will start. First we have Vermont on Wednesday and we all know that they are going to be determined to redeem themselves after we beat them at their place back in January (something that we hadn't been able to do since my freshman year). Then, following Vermont, we take on New Hampshire on Saturday for senior day. Who would have thought that this day would come? No need to get sad though, it won't be my last game in the comfort of our gym; we are hosting the America East tournament.
Thinking about the tournament it is definitely going to be a hard fought battle from every team. It's possibly 3 or 4 days of games for some teams, but at the end of the day on Sunday only one team will be going to the "Big Dance." Of course as seniors we want to go out just like we came in our freshman year, and that is on top. Nothing will be easy, every team will get after it, but that's what makes winning a championship feel so great. Knowing that after all the hard work that you put forth (all the "blood, sweat, and tears" so to speak) has paid off. I look forward to these next few games and I hope I get to see all of your faces here cheering us on like you have; not only this season, but during my career at Hartford.
Till next time...
ML
Thinking PINK...
Hello Hawk Fans!
Well after finishing the first round of conference play, we are currently sitting near the top of the league standings in second place (8-1) just behind Boston University who is currently undefeated. Of course, I am sure we still sit at the top of your hearts when it comes to cheering in the America East :). But as the second round of league play kicked off, the team had a great showing on Saturday. We picked up a convincing victory over Maine, a team whose record doesn’t give them justice to what they could do in our conference.
As we enter this week’s competition, we have a road game at Binghamton and then conclude the remainder of our non-conference schedule with a home game against Marist on Sunday, which is airing on ESPN 2. Going into our game on Wednesday at Binghamton we know that it is going to be a tough one, just like many of our games in conference play. The Bearcats are a tough team who play very well at home and have a good crowd of fans, but of course not as good as ours, so we are definitely going to need to be focused and ready to continue with the type of play that we have outputted these past couple of games.
Not to jump ahead to the weekend, but the game against Marist will be a special one for our program. It marks the first time that one of our games will be televised on ESPN 2 at home and allows us to support the fight against breast cancer, a fight that the late Coach Yow and many others have tried to do so much for. The girls and I will be sporting white with pink uniforms while Marist will be wearing all pink. I encourage all of you to sport some type of pink at the game, but wear more white so that Marist doesn’t get the wrong idea and think that you are cheering for them. The game is at 1 p.m. on Sunday so I hope that all of you out there are able to make it, and if not, be sure to watch!
Anyways I hope the start of the week is a great one for everyone and I look forward to seeing you all in the gym on Sunday!
Till next time...
ML
Perseverance...
Hello Hawk Fans!
I hope this latest blog finds everyone well and staying warm during these cold weeks. I am sure many of you are aware that our conference schedule is underway. After one of our toughest non-conference schedules we finally have started a new part of our season. We are currently 4-1 right now and were able to bounce back after a midweek loss at Boston University and pick up a tough victory over Stony Brook on Saturday at home. As great as it was to win, the basketball world lost a truly amazing individual on Saturday.
My thoughts and prayers go out to Kay Yow and her family. Now I personally never knew Coach Yow, but growing up in Virginia and surrounded by many ACC schools it was hard to not know who she was. As it has been said by so many sportscasters and written in newspapers across the country these past couple days, Kay Yow was an extreme asset to women's basketball and cancer research. She was diagnosed the first time in 1987 and the following year coached the U.S. Olympic team to a Gold Medal. After being diagnosed again she still went on and coached and did what she does best, shaping the lives of everyone she met. I don't think I have ever heard of such a stronger person. I know that at one point every athlete (even yours truly) hits a point in practice or a workout where they don't think their body can push any further, whether it is having to run another sprint or do another drill, they think it's too hard, they are too tired. But now thinking about how Coach Yow battled for 20 years against a disease that finally got the best of her, and she went to practice and coached during games when she was probably not feeling her best, I think now how running that extra sprint or doing whatever, seems so minimal to what she was having to battle against.
So I leave you with this thought, the next time you find yourself thinking that you are too tired to do something or you can't push yourself any further, just think about a woman who was able to push herself for 20 years and did what she loved every day, no matter how she felt and see if you aren't able to find another gear.
Till next time...
ML
With the Holidays comes A New Season...
Happy Holidays Hawk Fans!
I hope this note finds everyone doing well and enjoying the holiday season. Christmas time is probably my favorite time of the year because I get to see family and friends that I don’t always get to see during the year and of course it gives me the opportunity to sleep in my own bed. You may think it’s a silly thing being excited to sleep in your own bed and some of you out there may even take it for granted, but until you’ve been away from it for a while whether it is weeks or months; when you are finally under your covers again it is amazing. However, as much as I love my bed it was great to see my family and friends. I got to hang out with aunts and uncles and cousins who I haven’t been able to really visit with since I have been at school, so anytime I get to is a great time. Although my time at home was short I wouldn’t have traded it for anything.
With the holidays comes probably the part of the season that my teammates and I really enjoy. It is the one time where we don’t have to worry about homework, projects, or any exams because it is winter break for our entire campus. So we get to spend our days going to practice and then relaxing the rest of the day finding things to do like shopping at the mall, going to see a movie and I even think this year we are going to fit in some time for ice skating, bowling and even laser tag (you can never be too old for laser tag). With the break from classes also brings us the next part of our season.
After our game against UConn on New Year's Eve we have our first conference game at home versus Binghamton. This game will be our first opportunity to show the conference who we are this year and to use everything that we have learned in all of our wins and losses during the non-conference schedule. As tough of a schedule that we have had this year I truly believe that it has helped prepare us. We have much to prove while protecting what is rightfully ours and I think every player on the team is ready for it. So with that said I hope everyone out there has a safe and happy New Year and I expect nothing less than to see all of you at our home game against Binghamton on January 7 (Wednesday)!
Till next time...
ML
PS...To answer the question that I received a little while back from Chad Marquardt from Avon, CT: I would have to say that my favorite memory on the basketball court would have to be beating Syracuse last year, but then again beating Duke this year was pretty memorable. However, memories are not always restricted to just on the court. My favorite off the court memory would have to be this year when we held our Secret-Santa party for our team at our apartment on campus and had the entire team and coaching staff over for food and of course the gift exchange!
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back...
Hello Hawk fans!
After 10-days of being on the road our team is back in Connecticut. Unfortunately, for those of you who were following us, you are well aware that the outcome was short of what we wanted and expected.
We started our journey (I am pretty sure you can call it that since we were in three different states--if not, I’ve changed the rules) in Chicago where we competed in DePaul’s tournament. Opening up with a win over then ranked #6, in the country, Duke University (who has dropped to #12 since losing to us) was a great start. Anyone who knows Katie (Kelley) and I know that we have pretty much been Duke fans (more on the men’s side) since we were growing up; and here we were playing against them and winning! The game was a battle from the moment the ball was thrown up from the ref’s hands to the final seconds when Chante Black missed a shot attempt at the end and the buzzer sounded. It was the same joy and excitement that I felt after we beat Syracuse in the first round last year.
Just as we planned from the start of this journey we were going to be playing in the Championship game of this tournament against the host, Depaul University. For those of you who listened to the game online or the radio are aware that the nine point defeat was not what we wanted. As a team there were things that we didn’t do well and were quite clear when we watched film.
Now I know I said we went to three states, but I am going to skip over Ohio because well if you saw the score of that game, then it’s pretty self-explanatory of how that part of the trip went; and we were far from playing the Hartford basketball that many of you witnessed in our first two home games.
Finally we concluded our journey in our Nation’s capital, that’s right, Washington, D.C. Many of you may be aware of the fact that D.C. is not far from where I live, and in recent blog postings will have remembered me saying that this part of the journey would be my homecoming game. However, before the Liberty game Coach Rizz took us down by the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, Vietnam War Memorial and we all walked around and took in the history that was around us. Here we are many years later (I don’t feel like doing the math, haha) standing in our own history with the recent election of President-elect Barack Obama. The growth that this country has gone through is amazing. Now back to basketball...
For the first game I had a little over 20 friends, coaches, and family members come out and see us pull out a victory over a Liberty team who has dominated the Big South for the last decade.
After the game we watched the first-half and part of the second-half of the George Washington-South Alabama game. South Alabama put in a fight as they were knocking down outside shot after outside shot, but in the end GW pulled out the five point victory. We didn’t see the end of the game because we were at my house, YES that’s right, MY HOUSE (I guess you can say I was just a little excited). Anyways our team bus, along with parents of players on the team and my own family drove to Centreville, VA where we ate an assortment of food from pasta to shrimp to vegetables and wings; there was so much food I don’t think I even had everything.
Of course though I had plenty of room for dessert, which mainly comprised of brownies, chocolate chip cookies, peanut butter blossoms and my ultimate favorite nighty-nites (I know most of you probably don’t know what those are and we will keep it like that since I don’t really like to share sweets--especially these). As much fun as home was, we had to get back to the hotel so that we could rest up for our game against GW.
The GW game was our second opportunity to win a Championship. The game was once again a battle and was in our grasp, but when they knocked down two free throws with six seconds on the clock they were able to secure a 67-65 victory.
I mentioned earlier how our road trip/journey ended differently then what we wanted. Finishing 2-3 was not what anyone expected. Anyone that knows us knows that we don’t take losing lightly and that when we step on the floor against Quinnipiac on Wednesday, we will be playing with some fire.
Well I hope you all enjoyed your Turkey holiday and ate lots of good food and I hope to see you guys on Wednesday at Quinnipiac or Saturday at HOME (we don’t get too many of them, so cash in while you can) against St. Joe’s!
Till next time...
ML
Dressed to Impress....
High heels, make-up, fancy attire; did I mention high heels?
Last Thursday night at the Crowne Plaza in Downtown Hartford our team hosted the annual Tip-A-Hawk dinner and silent auction. For the past several years our program has used this event as a great fundraiser for trips like Hawaii, where we came out on top after beating Virginia in the finals by 17. More importantly though it is an opportunity for all the girls on the team to dress in a little something other than our super comfy sweats or our basketball uniform. However, I don't know how much longer I could have worn my
heels, for whatever reason they were not cooperating with me that night. Guess I should just stick to flip-flops. The night was a blast though getting to interact and meet many supporters of the program. I think I may just have to come back for it next year, who knows maybe even co-host with Court (Courtney Gomez).
As much fun as it was getting all dolled up, I think the team is really looking forward to our game against Dartmouth. In nearly 24 hours we will be opening up the season at home (2:00 p.m. Saturday) and I couldn't be more excited. I think after six weeks of preseason and four weeks getting beat up by one another in practice (I have the scratches and bruises to prove it), it's going to be nice to get the season underway and of course defending our longest home win streak in the nation!
The team has been working really hard and the coaches have done a tremendous job in getting us prepared for Dartmouth and the season. It was great seeing so many people at our Fan Fest at the start of November and I hope to see you all there again Saturday!
Till next time...
ML
The Countdown to Tipoff Begins ...
Hello Hawk Fans,
Well the season is finally here! Well, maybe not the actual season per say, but real practices have started and that just means we are that much closer to our first game and our quest toward another conference championship and return to the NCAA tournament.
After kicking off the start of the season with Midnight Mania, we have now completed our first week of practice. Midnight Mania was great, but the highlight of the night was seeing Ilicia's younger sister Michaela win the dance competition. Keep in mind she is nine years-old and had moves that I can only dream of!!
There were a lot of good things that came out of practice this past week, but there is definitely a lot to be worked on. We concluded the week with our annual Red/White scrimmage. The coaches divided the teams up and we played for about an hour while members of the Flight Zone and anyone who felt like catching a glimpse of what was to come this season watched. Afterwards we held a question and answer session for our fans.
I really do enjoy scrimmages and I can't wait till our scrimmage next week against Fairfield. After two weeks of playing against your teammate’s everyday, it's going to be nice to play against a team that doesn't know exactly what you are going to do and you are able to really analyze the things that work well and what needs to worked on more.
Next Sunday we have our Fan Fest Day with the men's basketball team and it is open to the entire public. It gives those who are interested an opportunity to meet the players and coaches from each team while getting to participate in lots of activities. I look forward to seeing everyone there!
Until next time ...
ML
P.S. A Special shout-out to the McCabe’s in California! To answer your question you are definitely my biggest fans (non-family) on the west-coast! Love and miss you guys!
Three Down, One to Go
Hello Hawk Fans,
It seems like just yesterday Katie, Lisa, Erica and I were arriving on campus for summer school before freshman year.
There were a lot of firsts that summer. One I will never forget was during the first weekend when Katie and I walked about 3.5 miles to Bishop’s Corner to the McDonald’s because we didn't have a car. The dining hall was closed and our parents had left and not everyone was up at school yet. I kept telling Katie that it was just over the hill; little did I know there were about three hills. Now here we are three years later with many more firsts that have prepared us for our fourth and final year. Of course Erica has one more year because she red-shirted, but I still think of her as a Senior.
Most of us spent the second summer session (this summer) working out and going to classes or internships. Everyone arrived back on campus for the start of school in September and began with basketball right away. We've had multiple workouts during the week, open gyms for us to play 5-on-5 and every weekend so far we have had recruits. That is one thing that I am going to miss about being an underclassmen. As an underclassman, you get to host recruits, which means one night out to dinner at a great restaurant with the coaches, your recruit and their parents. Seriously, who wouldn't want that?
The second week of September we had our Golf Tournament, which turned out to be a huge success. Courtney Gomez, who graduated last year, participated in the event and she and I have already talked about playing next year. Though I'm pretty sure my golf swing may not be as successful as my three-point shot, but we shall see.
Last week we had our annual kick-off picnic with the Flight Zone. It was great to see everyone again after the long summer. The people in the Flight Zone have definitely been like another family these past three years.
I can't wait for practice to start and the season to really get underway. Our coaches have put together a competitive non-conference schedule that will without a doubt challenge us, but also put us in a position for more firsts, while preparing us for the America East and of course the post-season. Our non-conference schedule includes a short tournament right after Thanksgiving, down at George Washington University in D.C. and I am really looking forward to that. Since GW is only about 45 minutes from my house, the two-day tournament will be like my homecoming game, allowing a lot of family and friends to be there.
My motto for this year is to have fun and win games so that we are playing as long as possible, because after that it's the real world and I am currently enjoying the one that I am in.
Till next time...
ML
