Special to HockomockSports.com
Hello everyone! Sorry it has taken me a little while to write… I have been caught up in all the games! There are 19 teams here at the World Cup, and everyone is divided into 4 pools. For the first week, everyone plays the teams that are in their pool, and then teams are seeded and a championship bracket is created. We started off with an 8 p.m. game on Thursday against England.
The day went by so slow, and we were all anxiously awaiting our first opportunity to play. When we finally got on the field, it felt great, and we came out with a 17-7 win. After the game we kind of felt down… we knew we hadn’t played our best game and were upset that England got 7 goals on us. I know some of you might look at the score and see a blowout, but what makes this team great is that we are never satisfied and always striving to get better. We know we will never be perfect, but we all individually and collectively set our expectations very high. As Thomas Edison once said, “Show me a thoroughly satisfied man and I will show you a failure”
(Photos from England game: http://laxmagazine.com/international/women/2012-13/news/071113_Photo_Gallery-_USA_vs_England)
We had the day off Friday and got to go to the movies. We all saw "The Heat" and it was so funny! Melissa McCarthy is hilarious, and the movie is actually based in Boston, which is pretty cool. After the movie we got some dinner and ice cream. Overall it was a nice day off.
On Saturday we played Wales and won 19-2. It was a great day for both our offense and defense. Something really special that I have noticed here is that everyone and every team play with so much PRIDE! When Wales scored the stands erupted, even though they were losing by a lot. Don’t get me wrong, I love to win, but sometimes its nice to remember that we all love to play lacrosse because its fun.
(Photos from Wales game: http://laxmagazine.com/multimedia/photos/2012-13/news/071313_usa_wales_jcpinheiro)
Sunday was our first big test against Australia. Australia and the USA have always battled it out for the Gold medal. At the 2009 World Cup, the USA beat Australia by one in pool play, and then won 8-7 in the Gold medal game. Back in 2005, the Australians took home the Gold.
I was really nervous going into this game! But after the first 15 minutes, those nerves were gone. Our team is so strong. We have so much depth and can run all day. The score was close in the first 5 minutes, but they just could not keep up with us for the complete 60 minutes. The final score was 18-9. I know the lacrosse fans out there might like to see a closer game, but as a player its nice to totally dominate your rival!
(Photos from Australia game: http://laxmagazine.com/multimedia/photos/2012-13/news/071413_usa_australia_jc_pinheiro)
Monday was another off day, and our team headed into Toronto for some sightseeing. I am really thankful for all our sponsors because we have gotten to do so many fun things! This time we got to go up the CN Tower. The view was amazing!!
By going 4-0 in pool play we earned the no. 1 seed in the championship bracket. I know we dominated the pool play, but no one on this team is going to take the next three games lightly. Other teams are going to come out fighting, with new strategies and new looks. But we haven’t played our best game yet. I am glad I am on this team because I would not want to play us.
We are going to come out strong as ever because we all want to take home the Gold!
(Photos from Canada game: http://laxmagazine.com/multimedia/photos/2012-13/news/071613_usa_canada_jc_pinhiero_fil_world_cup)