September 8, 2003 - Stacie Twehues

"If they don't score, we don't lose" is a profound statement made by an intelligent man that proved to be true last weekend in Dallas. We were victorious in both of our games, allowing for a light and fun-spirited weekend.

When we arrived on Thursday night, we checked into our hotel and immediately went for "food in the body." We had gone a few too many hours without eating, and because the Olive Garden turned us away, Cheddar's was graced with our presence.

A certain someone ordered a Cookie Monster dessert as her appetizer, and apparently she hadn't had enough of it because she came sprinting out of the restaurant trying to stop us from leaving her behind after we had all finished eating.

On Friday night, we played Hardin-Simmons University and beat them 3-0. We dominated most of the game and played well against a tough competitor. Alison Stitz scored her first goal of the season on a long shot from outside of the 18-yard box. Freshman Adrienne DeMarais followed with two great goals.

Since we had the day off on Saturday, some people decided to stay at the hotel and study, while others took advantage of sightseeing opportunities. We ran into an unexpected tourist spot on the corner of Market and Elm St. in downtown Dallas. It proved to be very educational.

As we were stopped at the red light, a pizza man on a bike crossed the street. When he rode up onto the sidewalk, he hit a large cone, falling off of his bike, the pizza hitting the ground. He didn't check to make sure he was okay, but immediately opened the pizza box to see if it had survived the fall. Indeed, it had not.

While many of us thought he would just eat the pizza because it looked a little mangled, he proceeded to put the pieces back into place with his gravel-covered hands, and shut the box to continue his delivery. Moral of the story: Beware of pizzas delivered on bikes; you never know where they have been.

Our true sightseeing occurred at the 6th Floor Museum where Lee Harvey Oswald shot JFK. The museum was informational and provided us with a look into Kennedy's life and the history behind the assassination. It was a surreal experience, standing in the exact location of where JFK's motorcade passed and seeing the grassy knoll.

On Sunday, we played Austin College and were victorious once again, winning 2-0. Austin managed to hold us off until the 78th minute when Carrie Eckenhoff scored on a breakaway. Lauren Lankford solidified our lead less than ten minutes later off of a corner kick from Laurel O'Neal. This win, along with the one on Friday, made for an enjoyable plane ride home.

We are off to a 4-0 start on the road, with our home opener this coming Friday night. We are all looking forward to this weekend and look to improve on our record thus far.

September 15, 2003 - Jenny Sale

"Last Thursday evening, we started off the weekend with a pre-game burrito feast at Eck, Lank, and Fox's new house. Eating is, after all, what we do best on the women's varsity soccer team here at Emory University (aside from soccer, that is).

We followed up the meal with hysterical game of "Would You Rather?" and played with Frank, the most adorable kitten in the world. Friday marked the first home game of the season and the first relatively cool evening in a month. With the weather and an abundance of fans on our side, we managed to shut out the competition and improve our record to 5-0-0.

The following day was our first free Saturday of the school year, which we all spent in the library, of course! Well, maybe not all of us.

We kicked off Sunday morning in true form with another eating frenzy at the English house. Thank you so much Mr. and Mrs. English!! It is not an easy task to feed 30 soccer players. The brunch also provided an opportunity to celebrate Ali's 20th birthday with a flaming bagel (thanks to Eck's creative genius) and some out-of-tune singing. With a slight case of food-coma, we all returned home for a little pre-game relaxation.

Our second game of the weekend was a good battle. With no score at the end of regulation, we proceeded into Golden Goal overtime. One and a half minutes into the overtime period Jenna scored the lone goal of the game!

We were all so ecstatic; we rushed the field immediately after the goal. Thus concluded another exciting, soccer-packed weekend with the Emory University varsity women's soccer team.

September 22, 2003 - Stacie Twehues

Ohio Wesleyan University's Women's Soccer Team: Two-Time Defending National Champions with a 51-game Winning Streak.

We were faced with the opportunity of a lifetime last weekend, a chance to play this team. Practices were intense all week and we were focused at practice, learning their style of play so that we would be ready when we faced them on Saturday.

The "revelation" was one less intense moment where Sabo explained to us a fantastic way to score when an offensive corner kick is cleared out by the defense. We were skeptical, but kept it in the back of our minds, in case the opportunity to execute it came about.

We flew into the Columbus airport, had a light practice, and went to dinner at the Brown Jug, a local restaurant in Delaware, Ohio. We decided that everything was good there with some ketchup or barbecue sauce.

While none of believed Sabo when he said he ran into a musical artist at the pool, he proved us wrong when he handed out Jason Levasseur's CD to us at our team meeting. Jason was staying at our hotel because he was playing at Ohio Wesleyan on Friday night, and when he talked to Sabo, wished us luck, told us to beat OWU, and proceeded to get CDs for each of us. It was a nice surprise.

On Saturday morning, we arrived to the field focused and ready to break OWU's winning streak. Throughout our warm-up we were defending well, but also scoring goals, all the while getting pumped up by the other team's warm-up CD.

While we did not come out victorious, losing 2-0, we held our heads high, knowing that we had given it our all. The game was even, and we definitely had our chances to score. Shots wide or hitting the crossbar, a header over the goal, our opportunities were there. We could have easily scored four or five goals, but we didn't.

We now want to face them in the national championship, but instead defeat the two-time defending national champion.

September 29, 2003 - Stacie Twehues

We played three games last week in preparation for the beginning of conference competition. In order to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA national tournament, we must win our conference, the UAA. So these upcoming games are the most important ones of the season.

Our first game was on Wednesday against Wesleyan College in Macon, Ga. We rode a bus and when we arrived, those of us in the back noticed that the driver had gotten a little too close to the trucks next to us when we heard a scratching noise on the side of the bus.

And before the game a certain upperclassman seemed to be a little confused when she came out of the locker room and no one was outside. We all looked on from the van as she wandered aimlessly for a little while until she realized where we were. Everyone who traveled received a good amount of playing time, and it proved successful as we won 8-0.

Friday night we played Oglethorpe University. Their main focus was to pack it in on defense to keep us from scoring, and if they had the chance, they would try to score on a breakaway. Luckily Jenna Kereikas scored in the first 15 seconds for us, a very important goal as the score was 1-0 at the end of the game.

It was difficult and at times frustrating playing against a team that plays like that. We had to try to beat their defensive strategy, but were not so successful that game. We played well and dominated the entire game as they had no shots.

On Sunday, we played Agnes Scott College and were victorious 6-0. It was a great conclusion to the week, coming away with three wins, three shutouts, and 15 goals.

After the last game, our assistant coach, Laura, had us all over for a chocolate party. We enjoyed dipping fruit, pretzels, chips, and many other foods in the melted chocolate. But we also got to make our own molds and peanut butter cups.

Everyone was feeling the amount of chocolate we had consumed when we left. It was a nice chance for everyone to be together off the soccer field.

October 13, 2003 - Jenny Sale

For one of the few times all season we had a full week of practice and recuperation between our tough game in Chicago and our home game against Washington University.

To prepare for the home match on Saturday we all got together at Jen's apartment for our typical Friday night feeding frenzy. In between bites, we discussed strategy for the game the following afternoon. At the end of the meeting and six large pizzas later, we were all substantially stuffed and pumped up for the game the next day.

Prior to our game we all congregated in our home stadium to support our men's team. We cheered them on as they battled Wash U into a double overtime thriller.

Jenna provided us with our usual pre-game helping of Starburst candy before heading down to the field. We all have our unique preferences and superstitions about how many and which colors to eat before the game. Starburst has become a team staple over the years, and we attribute a large portion of our success to it.

After the men's game ended, we rushed onto the field for an abbreviated version of our 'seven lines' warm-up drill. It was such a breath of fresh air to be on our own beautiful turf, kicking off our first home conference game of the season. In a tough battle with Wash U, we managed another shutout victory.

Immediately following our post-game chat, we rushed to the locker room to clean up and kick off our fall break. We dispersed from the WoodPEC to various beaches, campgrounds, and hometowns to enjoy a few days off.

We will return to practice on Wednesday. Then Thursday it is off to Ohio and New York for the weekend.

October 20, 2003 - Megan Fox

At Case Western and Rochester last weekend, we experienced polar opposite field types and polar opposite results.

Our arrival in Cleveland on Thursday evening was characterized by a visit to Fat Billy's where we consumed mass amounts of pizza and engaged in an entertaining game of "Who am I?" During this game we learned that Bedford would like to visit the city of Ohio, Jenny wants to be a booger when she grows up, Candace likes her tuna seared, and Carrie wants to solve the worldwide problem of gingivitis. Fun was had by all.

All of our team bonding obviously paid off the next day when we beat Case Western University 2-1. While Case scored the first goal, we soon answered with two of our own goals. Jenna and Carrie each put one away for the Eagles. Still in high spirits, we went to the Olive Garden that night and celebrated Sabo's 35th birthday over breadsticks. Fun was had by all.

The next day was spent en route to Rochester, New York. Our men's and women's teams boarded the same bus on Saturday morning for an interesting six-hour trip. The girls asserted their bus prowess by beating the boys in the "movie game." Fun was had by the girls.

After a brief training session to acclimate ourselves to the turf field, we headed to the hotel for an early bed time and a pre-game team meeting. It was a cold and rainy Sunday morning in Rochester when we got to the men's game. We knew from practice and watching the men's game that the game would be fast and it wouldn't be pretty.

Possession was fairly even throughout the game. However, with about 15 minutes left in the second half, Rochester got lucky on a corner kick and we were unable to capitalize on any of our opportunities.

Both teams headed to the airport in low spirits with a strong distaste for turf fields, but with hope for victories in the remaining UAA games.

October 27, 2003 - Jenny Sale

After a long weekend up North, the women's varsity soccer team was elated to return to the warm whether of Atlanta. Where else do you find weather conducive to shorts and t-shirts nearing the end of October?

The weather and our beautiful field are just a few of the reasons we cherish our campus so much.

We began the week with our typical day off on Monday, followed by a light pre-game practice on Tuesday.

Wednesday we were back on the bus headed North to Piedmont College. Most of the team spent the two-hour ride catching up on homework or sleep, because we are all in the middle of midterm exams.

We arrived to Piedmont two hours early providing ample time to stock up on some pre-game groceries at the Winn Dixie. We fueled up on some team staples including Disney Princess fruit snacks and Flavor-Blasted Goldfish.

After winning our game we loaded the bus, and the inevitable post-game debate ensued over where to eat. This time, however, the debate was short lived. The team was practically unanimous that Arby's would be venue for "food in the body." Twenty sandwiches, curly fires, and Jamoca shakes later, we headed home.

We were given Friday and Saturday off to rest and recuperate. We reconvened on Sunday night, braving a 24-hour downpour, for an inner-squad scrimmage on a slightly soppy field.

The upcoming week is a big one. We have two very important games this weekend. The team is ecstatic about our Thursday night dinner at the Fox household. Additionally, we look forward to our annual family gathering and feast at Sabo's house on Saturday.

November 3, 2003 - Stacie Twehues

Last weekend full of "food in the body" and soccer, not much different from any other weekend.

It started last Thursday night with the annual Fox household dinner. Both the men's and the women's teams arrived to the house hungry for a home-cooked meal. We ate enormous amounts of chicken, steak, salad, and cake, leaving us completely satisfied. It is very generous of the Foxes to do this every year for us, and we appreciate it so much. It's a wonderful pre-game meal, to say the least.

Friday night was the beginning of three important games for us. If we were to win all three, there was the possibility we could win the UAA and its automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. As Sabo said, the "door was open" for us to take advantage of this opportunity.

While we played hard the entire game, it came down to Brandeis scoring within the first three minutes of the game. We could not finish our chances, it just wasn't there for us, and we lost 2-0. We left that game knowing that our chances of making the NCAA tournament were virtually gone.

It is very disheartening to know that our season is almost over, not being able to look forward to the NCAA tournament. It was important for us as a team to go out the next two games and put everything we had into them.

Friday night's loss was in the back of our minds as we traveled to Sabo's house for dinner. Because we had two conference games, many of the parents came in from out of town to see the games, and to meet the rest of the team and other parents.

There was a large gathering at Sabo's house, almost 80 people, with a team of 29 girls. Our parents are extremely supportive, and were happy to be a part of this annual dinner. While there, we again had large amounts of "food in the body," and were also able to watch a video from Australia.

Sabo took a video camera with him on our preseason trip in August, filming almost everything we did while traveling around. It was fun and entertaining for those of us who were on the trip; those who did not go got the chance to see what we did. Overall, the evening was a good one, and again, we left satisfied and full of food, a motto on our team.

We arrived Sunday prepared to play and beat NYU. While they had not won a game in the conference, anything can happen in conference games and we wanted to be sure to win. We were able to win 2-0 on great goals by Jenny Sale and Jenna Kereiakes. It was great that we were able to pull together as a team, after losing on Friday night, and come through with a win Sunday.

We now enter the last week of the regular season with our final game on Saturday against Carnegie Mellon. While it may be our last game, we hope that maybe something will happen that would allow us to enter post-season play.

November 10, 2003 - Jenny Sale

Emotions were mixed during our last week of the soccer season. There were feelings of excitement and anticipation for our upcoming game melded with sadness and nostalgia as the season came to a close.

Each day that passed, we were one day closer to the end of the season for the team and the end of an era for the three seniors. Practices suddenly became a little more exciting and special. Everyone's spirits were especially high for practice on Friday.

It was Friday that I realized that this was my last formal practice with the team. At this point I began to reminisce back to the first practice of my soccer career at Emory.

I showed up an hour early for the 7 am fitness evaluation, terrified that I would oversleep. I sat silently in anticipation with the other freshman as the returning players arrived. The returning players seemed like a tight knit group. They seemed to love each other's company.

Even on that stressful morning, they were joking and exchanging pictures from the trip England they had returned from the week before. I remember feeling excited that I would soon be part of this group.

Fast forward to last Saturday. We all arrived early to watch our men's team lose a hard fought game. Despite the loss, the men still had a good chance of making the tournament.

Unfortunately our prospects for making the tournament were much less promising. When we stepped onto the field it was probably for the last game of the season. We were determined to end on positive note with one more win.

It was Senior Day. Jenn, Stacie, and I received beautiful bouquets from our coaches. Along with our names and numbers, the announcer credited each of us with a list of accomplishments achieved over the course of our careers at Emory.

Our victory over Carnegie Melon was bittersweet. We were ecstatic to end the season on a positive note. Yet, it was the end, the end of another wonderful season of varsity soccer at Emory.

The women's varsity soccer team provides so much more than is evident to an outsider. From the day I arrived at Emory, I was surrounded with a wonderful group of supportive individuals.

Our teammates are our classmates, roommates, and best friends. Over the years at Emory, you build a few special relationships that you know will last a lifetime. It is comforting to know that when I graduate I will take with me the relationships that I have built on the team.

It has been such a privilege playing soccer at Emory. We have traveled all over the country and even to Australia. We have seen Graceland, the Gold Coast, and even Arkansas for a brief minute (or was that just a dream, Connolly?).

I have done all of this playing the game that I love. To the Emory varsity soccer teams, thanks for the best memories of a lifetime. I think I speak for my fellow seniors when I say that I will cherish the memories forever.

Thank you Emory athletics department, parents, fans, guest coaches, Sabo, Laura, Janet, and the women's varsity soccer team for all of the support, good times, food and memories!