Pres Day Invite recap

[Haley Marie Lanoue]

Message from the Coach: 

Going into Pres Day Open, we had high expectations.  Ultimately, we wanted to make it to the Invite the following weekend by coming in 1st place.  Before the tournament, we had a few injuries from practice and our previous tournament that have been proving to be a problem for us this season. With a small roster, we have been putting a lot of emphasis on taking care of our bodies this season to make sure we have the numbers we need at tournaments.  Unfortunately, due to injuries and family commitments, four of our Scorchies weren't able to cleat up at UCLA.  However, we went in with heads held high and looking forward to lots of play time throughout the weekend.

Most of the competition we faced were less experienced teams, including quite a few B teams.  We started off the tournament strong, scoring 11 points on UCLA B before their first point.  We ended the game 13-1 and were proud to have played our game the whole time.  In the past, we have played down to other teams, but one tournament focus was to keep up our intensity and capitalize on other teams' mistakes, allowing us to play our game.  Next was a rematch against Cal B from when we played them two weeks before at Santa Barbara Invite.  Previously, we played a very sloppy game against them, forcing long points against a team far less experienced.  This time, we played short, quick points by using quick transitions onto offense and bageling them 13-0.  The last game of the day would prove to be one of our toughest over the weekend, playing Colorado State, a team we didn't know much about before the first point.  They work very well together, with very fast handler movement to open up space.  We went down 0-3 before scoring our first point and traded points until half at 3-7.  They got the first point of the second half, 3-8.  We got one apiece for the next two points, 4-9.  We finished out the game with two very hard fought points and won the last two, finishing the game at 6-9.  Our second half was much better than the first, but we know we have to play strong for both halves in order to have the success we want.

Sunday morning we started against UCSD B, using some strong team defense to shut down their vertical stack, something we've been focusing on in practice.  We also used the opportunity to play a little zone defense when we had the chance and ended up with a 13-2 score.  Next up was Cal Poly SLO, a team we've faced many times in the past, so we knew it wasn't going to be an easy semi-final game.  We came out, getting a quick first point before losing the next five, starting off down 1-5.  After a timeout and some regrouping, we got the next point, but lost the half down 2-7.  At halftime, we talked about taking small steps, using our "games to 3" method to get back into this game.  It would be difficult, especially since we were starting on defense, but our Scorchies proved that taking those little steps can go a long way.  We scored the first two points of the half on very sloppy plays, but they were points, nonetheless.  Then we got the third (won the first game to three).  Then another.  Then another.  We got five breaks in a row to tie the game at 7s when soft cap went off, making a game to nine.  Scorch was right back in this game.  We ended up losing the next two points, but I was incredibly proud of the comeback the ladies had during the second half.  We definitely won that half, but it just goes to show that a strong team has to put two great halves together, as I said before.  Losing that game meant that we would not be traveling to San Diego the next weekend for the Invite, but we still had a shot to place in the top three, so we focused our frustration onto the next game against Irvine.  We traded points for the first few, but then only allowed a pair of points in each half to win third place 13-4.  

I am very proud of how our girls played over the weekend.  They played with a lot of heart, especially having a smaller roster than we're used to and we proved that we have the skills to make the comebacks when needed.  Now, it's time to focus on playing two strong halves every game.  We will continue using our "game to 3" method to take the little steps needed to make big gains on teams.  

Thanks LP for the wonderful tournament recap!

Scorch and Sirens are headed to Trouble in Vegas next weekend and are beyond thrilled to show off what we have been working on. 

With more tournaments on the horizon, however, we need as much help with fundraising as possible! We are still selling Tucson Conquistador raffle tickets for $10 each so please shoot myself or scorchc...@gmail.com an email to get yourself one! We are also having a percentage night at Pei-Wei on University on Monday March 3rd! This lasts the entire day and in order to benefit scorch all you have to do is go in, hand them the attached flyer, and enjoy your meal (don't forget to pay)! 

If you ever want to stop by practice, alumni are always welcome.  In fact, we are going to be scrimmaging the Tucson ladies onMonday, Feb. 24 from 6-8 if you are available to play or just give pointers!

We would love to hear back from you all! Have a fabulous weekend and look back for an update about Vegas!

Scorchie Love,

Haley Lanoue

[Jim Morrison]

Thanks for the updates! Sounds like a lot of good things were happening in San Diego. 

Please put me down for two raffle tickets. Can I use pay pal or do you need a check?

Jim

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[Haley Marie Lanoue]

Hey Jim! Thank you so much for your interest. You can pay the $20 ($10 for each ticket) through paypal to the account nan...@cox.net. Just be sure to include what the money is for on the payment! Also for the ticket stub we need your mailing address as well as phone number to send in the ticket! Thank you again for helping us out, we all truly appreciate it!!

- Haley

[Jim Morrison]

PayPal sent. Here's my contact info:

Jim Morrison

267-240-6196

27 Oxford Court

Simsbury, CT 06070

And Good Luck this season!

[Haley Lanoue]

Thank you so much!! This is incredibly appreciated by the whole team and especially by the board!

- Haley Lanoue