North Carolina State University Athletics
LaCroix Tours U.S. With Summer League Softball
7/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Softball
July 13, 2004
ORLANDO, Fla. - What team are you playing with? Gold Coast Hurricanes
What type of team is it? An ASA 18 Gold summer-ball team with players mostly from Davie and Ft. Lauderdale, but one from Tallahassee, one fromFt. Myers and one from Orlando =D (that's me)
Are you enjoying it? Yes, I'm having a blast! Softball is fun anyway, but these coaches and group of girls make it all the more exciting.
What have you done that you would want your fans at NC State to know about that is exciting? We played 5 games in one day back to back to win our 1st tournament of the summer which happened to be a Gold Qualifier that earned us a bid to the Gold Nationals in Marietta, Ga.
How have the workouts been going? Great! They take a quite a chunk of time out of the day, but I feel like I am improving every day. In between traveling back and forth to Miami from Orlando for team practices and the daily college workouts I have very little personal time, but I make time. So, I've basically been "on the go" ever since I've been home.
What are you doing in your workouts? I'm basically following the workout sheet plus putting in extra time in the weight room. I try to get in there at least 5 days a week because I love lifting. Sometimes when you're at a tournament, like this past week we were in Colorado you get to spice up the running with jogs through the mountains. Then, when I get home I do the stuff I missed for traveling on the days marked "days off". So, I don't really get days off.
Have you improved your skills because of the additional playing time out there? Absolutely! Due to the level of play in ASA gold, 3 to 4 practices a week and all the extra individual time with the coaches I have learned many new things. There is always something more to learn no matter what level you're playing.
Are you missing NC State, Raleigh, the coaches? ....Um maybe...ha ha Of course! I miss the rhythm of being in school and practicing, and all the other little stuff you take for granted like saying hey to friends and Gumbi's pizza. Plus I do miss all the softball girls and the coaches. I don't think I realized how much I missed them until I saw them in Colorado. They were so proud of our team talking to other coaches in all their bright red Wolfpack Softball gear =)
What has been your favorite tournament or game? It's between the Boulder, Colorado tournament, and the New York tournament. Colorado was the biggest exposure tournament, plus I've never been there so, all the mountains with snow on top in the middle of summer were amazing, but in New York we played awesome teams like the Georgia Elite (whom we beat! Woo hoo!), Gordon's Panthers from Cali. , and the Va, Shamrocks ( Those were both great games even though we lost in extra innings).
Anything big happen during one of your games? I had a walk off game winning hit against the Tampa Mustangs which sent us to the championship game in the 1st gold qualifying tournament we won.
What do you miss most about North Carolina? All the friendly people. You don't get people saying "bye darlin' " or "I hear ya" in Florida.
What do you miss least about North Carolina? The cold, cloudy days with a constant steady rain.
What do you like most about the Orlando? All the sunshine, the beaches, and the Theme parks. You don't realize how lucky you are until you can't go to Disney or Universal every weekend.
What do you like least about the Orlando? The heat and humidity is pretty bad....I got in my car one day and the temperature said it was 105 degrees!
What are you looking forward to next season? Playing a harder schedule with tougher competition, and seeing the improvements the team has made over the past year. We are getting some great new freshmen that will definitely add and help the team. We aren't starting from scratch anymore!
What are some team and personal goals for next year? For the team I hope we can place higher in the ACC, earn a better finish in the ACC tournament, and all around kick more butt. Due to the conditioning and lifting I know, hopefully, that I am stronger and faster and I'm personally looking forward to having a better season in every aspect of the game.
What did you learn after your first year as collegiate athlete? There are many obstacles you must overcome, but once you do the work it's worth the rewards. You have a lot more younger girls looking up to you than you know.
