Coach Flip Naumburg's Journal

Thursday, July 1, 2004

SAYONARA

I went to Japan and China.  That covered three weeks plus.  I did almost no coaching during that time, but I still had plenty to say about it all.  It was hard to "update" in the Orient. I came home.  I was caught up in some sort of jet lag, because I ended up writing until the wee hours of the morning three nights running.  It was way past my (any) normal bedtime. 

I documented and I edited.  I edited and I documented. The sun kept coming up again.

Then, somewhere near the end of this cathartic process of normalization I got my on line ass kicked off line mid-update, and suddenly my crashing computer had eaten thousands of MY words.   Insights from the Far East, surely my first and last visit there, were forever lost in an instant. Dust in cyber space.  I have the original stuff from when I first wrote it on you know, WORD, but I took this journal rejection as a sign from God that it was time to chill, and I haven't had the heart to write since.

GEE IT'S GOOD TO BE BACK HOME?

On top of that, when I got all the way back in the U.S.S.A I managed to become stricken with the first bug (sick) that saw me, and boom, here I am, almost through with the Days of Vail, and I remain not quite myself.  The anti-biotics are just kicking in.

VAIL – TEAM ROCK-IT POCKET  8  -  TRI-STATES  5

I must write about today.  We (Team Rock-it Pocket) won our first round game against Tri-State, a new entry in the Shootout from the east, and mostly Connecticut Yankees I think.  We won 8-5, gradually taking control of the game after falling behind 2-0 at the start.  We had good scoring chances early and often.  Their goalie made 17 saves.  Our goalie, Alex Smith (CSU 2003) made a "mere" 14 saves.  He had help from his defense.  He was fantastic when he needed to be.  He also pretty much ran the game from his perch. 

SOME THINGS OLD, SOME THINGS NEW, SOME THINGS BORROWED . . .

Mark Plonkey (#17 CSU 2004) assured me he would be all there today, and I assured him that I was counting on that very thing.  He was solid and stellar, and then at times he was exceptional.  Mark was almost a quiet star today, but a bright one at the same time.  It was like he knew when to step up and when to step back, and nobody had to call out, "It's Plonkey time!"  It all seemed so natural.

Lance Vitt is our D-Oner (player from a Division I Program Ohio State 2005), and he had three goals.  There is a big part of me that thinks this kid really belongs with us at CSU, but at any rate I am glad to have him once a year.  Harper (CSU 2005) had I think 3 assists, which were huge.  I think KJ (CSU 2004) had nothing but a very good game.  He doesn't need points to be valuable anymore.

We cleared poorly, but we faced off (Garth Heth CSU 1998) well.  We "meshed" quickly did Team Rock-it Pocket.  We ran three lines of middies plus.  This was rare for me (lines), but what was really new was that this was the first time that I have ever openly designated them as line #1, line #2, and line #3.  It has always been colors, or Earth, Wind, and Fire, or other such distracting nomenclature.  I think it worked well. I'm sure I did this for deep psychological and emotional reasons . . . . . .

WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR ME LATELY?

Many contributed.  I could say something positive about every single player on our relatively large roster.  I feel good about today. Then I know that tomorrow we will play the #2 seed GMH from Philadelphia (and around there).

They will have Division One All Americans up the wazoo, and we will have our little defense and a bunch of family values, and, aw shucks, we are just happy to be in the great eight and all, but if we are Cinderella, it ain't midnight til it's midnight, and IF we are to be with the Cinderfellas, then you will need to kill us real dead or we will keep coming after you.  At least that will be my message.

Next Entry | Previous Entry


Flip Started Blogging Before it was Cool, Read Over 400 of His Entries Since January 2001
Jump to a Period:
2006: Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov
2005: Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
2004: Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
2003: Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
2002: Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec
2001: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Sept Oct Nov Dec