Sept. 11, 2012

Get an inside look at the Stanford women's volleyball team each week. In this edition, sophomore Lydia Bai talks about the team's first home matches.

Hey Stanford fans,

Last week was absolutely amazing since we were FINALLY back home. While the road trip was a great bonding experience and a really great test for our team, we were so ecstatic to finally be home for an extended period of time.

First off the bat we played the China Jiangsu team. I was really excited to play them because I knew right away that they were going to be a challenge coming in as a professional team. It was such a great chance to play with a team that we had never heard of or seen before on the court. They had such a different system of play and it was so thrilling to look across the net and see completely different faces than we are used to. With that said the Stanford Invitational tournament was great to have another chance to play at home and really use our competitive skills. The win against UOP on Saturday was a really great learning experience and accomplishment for us because we were able to work on everything we were talking about and truly execute a good match.

After our tournament this weekend it was, get ready for it... J-Walk's 22nd birthday! After the game our team surprised her with a Sprinkles birthday cupcake. I didn't have any birthday candles on hand, because one, they are flammable and two, that would mean I would have had a lighter in our locker room which could have serious consequences. All jokes aside, I really needed a candle for the cupcake, so of course I had to download the Free Candle App on my iPhone. With the iPhone app ready on the phone, and the cupcake in my other hand, our team proceeded to sing a beautiful rendition of the Happy Birthday song. I do believe many of you have heard of this song before.

After a great, relaxing Sunday, where we were lucky enough to have a day off, we are ready to work hard this week and have some great matches this weekend!

Love,
Bai Bai