Well lets see. The past month and a half or so has been really difficult on and off the volleyball court. My team has trekked, sometimes begrudgingly, through 5 very intense, very physical matches against very competitive teams. I said right before our match versus VFM, that these next 5 matches would be the hardest 5 I have had in a role in my whole career. Just because of the level and intensity that these teams play at. I knew it would be a challenge. I didn't back down but it for sure worried me. I didn't know how my team would react, how the coaches would react, or how the people in my club would react. Personally I knew I had to just keep going no matter the result. Physically, my body is going through collapse mode, where everything is tight, or pulled or inflamed or hurt. That sucks.So the beginning of this odyssey started against the American girls of VFM. Again a very physical team and yes my team may not be able to match their physicality, we needed to go in and compete. That is all you can do, when playing a team that is a bit above your level because on any give day, anything can happen. We dropped the match 0-3, and it wasn't like VFM came and played a great game. Actually, our two previous meetings early in the season was way more competitive then this one was, but they did play well. I think the only thing they did was be consistent. It was our side that could not control anything, and in the end it was our downfall. This match would be the beginning of what I would call my volleyball mental decline.
So you pick your pride up and walk off the court. The girls there are always so nice to me when we meet, so that was a treat to talk to them a little bit after the game. Next match would be the Cup match. One of my teams goals going into this season was to make it to the next round of the Europa Cup. (read how the 1st round went here: http://builtfordtuff-volleygirl5.blogspot.com/2010/12/return-to-mallorca-europa-cup-sangria.html)
In Game three of this 5 game journey, the big bad wolves came to town. Okay well not the wolves. But the top team in the league, Volero. And if this were a fairy tale, we definitely would have been Little Red Riding Hood in the scenario. Except we didn't outsmart the wolf at the end. They were all we expected them to be. Big, Strong, Confident. They walk in the gym and its like, "Ooooh Awwwweee, Volero." But in actuality they are normal people two. Put their spandex on the same way and even laugh sometimes. Its just when they step on the court, they come to play, to compete and to win. Their record reflects their work ethic. Again I don't know what they do at practice, but no one just steps on a volleyball court and plays with such comraderie and fundamentals without practice and maybe there lies the answer for all us other teams. Talent only goes so far, but these girls are very talented too.
Personally, I don't believe I played bad. But of course it was not good enough for me to be satisfied. I wish I could have seen the block better and hit with more accuracy. I did not block well either, which is starting to become irritating since everyone believes in my ability to do it so well. I have become very undisciplined. So if there is one thing I wanna really focus on getting back to; its blocking. But as a whole it was a big step from the last time we played them. We actually did some good things out there and almost stole the third set. But in the end the match ended 3-0. Another L.
More to come later....
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