October 23, 2007

Hey y'all (another Texan writing),

Another exciting week for SWG with a twist. It was "cross training week", which meant we spent workout time in and out of the gym. We started in the gym Sunday with conditioning, then came the display of skills which continue to ramp up. Everyone completed the floor circuit and we had some exhibitions of floor passes. We will have some explosive "E" passes this year, with gorgeous piked full-ins from Allyse and Lauren, huge double lays from Tenaya and CJ, just to name a few. On Monday we moved to the pool. As a freshman, I was a little nervous because we were told how hard this practice was. It turned out to be a tiring but fun day! We swam laps, did some conditioning, and treaded water for fifteen minutes. Then we had some team competition when we split up for relay races. After that, we played water jug baseball and dodge ball. And to finish off a great day, we discussed team and individual goals for the season. This was really motivating and everyone is pumped to get their skills ready to compete. Wednesday, as a team we set more goals and discussed some things we are going to implement at practice. Thursday we took some team pictures around campus, had a team activity, and played some kickball. Friday, the team had discussion with a sports psychologist followed by an open workout, and again some great gymnastics. We ended a great week with some really hard work in the weight room. Overall, the week was really motivating and everyone is ready to dominate this season. To the Pac 10 and others...we'll be ready!

And another thing...I think we freshman are getting the hang of things! We know our way around and are not having to ask quite so many questions. J I know all three of us love being a part of SWG! Working with sixteen other gymnasts that have so much to offer in every aspect of life is amazing. They and our coaches have helped us freshman to make the life transition to college and to this team. We are so fortunate to have this group as mentors, teammates, and friends. This year will be like no other!

-Shelley Alexander

(One more thing from yesterday's practice...Liz Tricase is doing more and more gymnastics and she did some huge double layouts on floor!)