Baller for Life

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this before, but Ann Elizabeth and I are coaching the girls' basketball team at Ricks this year!  Those who know me well will undoubtedly furrow an eyebrow or let out a little chuckle upon hearing such a statement.  The only "ballin" I've done was a year or two in the ferociously competitive church league and a smattering of intramurals throughout college and grad school.  All combined, I've probably made about 5 baskets, and no doubt took the moment to jump up and down and raise a fist in triumph when I did so! 

And yet, in addition to becoming Ms. Wegman, I appear to have also become "Coach Wegman."  We started conditioning on Monday morning; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, we will be working out at 5... wait for it... AM.  I'm not really sure when I entered the twilight zone and became a person who goes to bed before 9 PM to get up at 4:45 AM, but it seems that is my life now!  The conditioning is definitely the part of coaching where I can take the lead.  After being a fitness instructor for the last year, I feel prepared teaching good form in running, push-ups, and sit-ups, and I feel right at home yelling "almost there" and "keep pushing" during our workouts.  Despite the absurdly early hour, I really am enjoying the conditioning.  And I can do most of the workout with the girls, so I'm finally getting my exercise fix!

Today was our first official afternoon practice.  We were supposed to start Monday, but have been rained out each day.  The court is outside, and apparently becomes treacherously slippery when wet.  But we finally started some real basketball today!  Ann Elizabeth heads up the actual basketball parts of practice, as she is a much more legit "baller" than I am or will ever be.  We did some passing drills and some shooting - just sticking to the basics!

This is the third year of the team's existence.  The first year most had never played before.  Last year they came in second place in their league.  This year we're hoping to go all the way!!  We have our first tournament coming up sometime in the second week of October... the Super Cup.  It's a big deal for the girls, so we're attempting to practice every day (Monday - Friday) between now and the big game.  Basically, it's a small tournament with a few other schools, but it means a lot to the team, and is sort of like a pre-season warm-up.
Obviously, we're not just in it for the "W" in the game.  We're hoping to really develop some meaningful relationships with these girls.  A few are in the 9th grade, but most are senior high (10th - 12th), so they're at an age when we can really develop some solid relationships.  We're having a party for them on Friday, just watching the movie "Love and Basketball" together and getting some snacks.  But the girls were SO, SO excited when we told them about it today - they literally ran around the court whooping and hollering.  It was pretty awesome.  We are excited to get to know them (even though it means MORE names to learn!  haha), and to share many fun experiences over the next year.

Oh, and one of the girls always comes to play in a black shirt she wrote on with white puffy paint; it reads, "Baller for Life."  Clearly, it inspired me :)