“Dear Journal,

So we started school. The summer went by so fast. We got a new strength coach over the summer and he is awesome. He came from the NBA and WNBA. He really made me a stronger athlete and taught me how to tap into that well that players have deep inside that allow them to push themselves beyond the point of exertion. Preseason started right away the first week and we were lifting and conditioning 6 days a week. It was so much harder than I imagined. We had one day off and that was Wednesday. It went by so fast, though.

Practices were starting before I knew it and I officially completed my last preseason as a Dayton Flyer. It was somewhat sad but nothing too tear jerking. Things with coach were still kind of awkward and I was hoping to be past that point by practice time but it still remained. Things were different all around. I was playing with younger players much different than I had played with in the past. It was hard for me because I was used to playing with players my age. They were either freshman or hadn’t seen much playing time in the past so it was hard to adjust to their different styles. Cyndi and I were the only returnees with college experience and so it made it hard.

For a while, I had to be real patient. I was playing with players that hadn’t much college experience and I was treating them like they did. I just am really demanding as a player and sometimes I don’t give people a chance to breathe. With a new coach and everything, everyone pretty much started on the same slate. We all learned new things at the same time so in that respect we were able to help each other out.

I guess coming into college, I always thought that it would be so much easier because you wouldn’t have to worry about what everyone else is doing and if they are doing it right. You would just have to focus on what the coach wants you to do and doing it to the best of your ability. But I found out that I was wrong. It is still much like high school in the respect that your point guard is responsible for running plays right, getting people in the right positions, and basically just running your team as the coach sees fit. This wasn’t so much a problem for me my first three years because I was playing with older players that have been playing longer than I, so I didn’t need to tell them where to go to run a play. This year has been harder though because everyone is much younger than me. I have to direct them and help them out at much as possible. When things get crazy and hectic on the court, it has been very trying for me to try to get people where they need to be and try to be a leader. It has been hard for me to try to make things like that right, me being a senior and all, but I have been trying and I will not stop until I succeed. Coach has been on me about that from day 1 and it’s sad to say but it took me awhile to understand how he wanted me to do it, but we are working on it and it’s getting better.

As for coach and I, he called me into his office sometime early when practice first started. He wanted to talk some philosophy with me and tell me what and how he wanted me to run his team. I didn’t know exactly what to expect because I never really talked one on one with him since he has been here. So I was a little nervous as if I was about to be in trouble even though I knew I wasn’t. He asked me if I thought we had a good relationship and if I felt that I could come to him about whatever. I didn’t really know how to respond to it because we never really talked. So he continued on to say that he heard some things about me when he first got there.

He wanted to sit back and observe me and see how I was going to react to everything. Then he said he came to realize that I wasn’t that way at all, and that he genuinely liked me. He said I carried myself very well and that I handled the new situation very well. He wanted me to know that he thought I was a great person and he really liked me and thinks that we could have a great relationship.

I didn’t know how to respond first of all because I was wondering why he thought I was cocky because that is the last thing I am. But I was relieved to hear what he said. I was glad that it was all behind me now and we could get along for real instead of putting on a front. Running his system became a little easier because we were able to communicate better. He was more critical of me than I was used to but I liked it. I always wanted to be picked apart each day until I achieved perfection and he was perfect for that.

He told me that he was going to treat me like everyone else and I was thankful for that. I never wanted to be put out in front of everyone like I was better. I always wanted to be punished and rewarded as equally as everyone else. He never let a moment slide that I messed up and he didn’t make a point about it. But, being a senior too, I expected more of that because I should know better than to make stupid mistakes because of my experience and age. I saw him in a different light, too. I respected him so much more because of that fact that he didn’t let a moment slide when someone messed up that he didn’t say something. He wanted to achieve perfection and didn’t except anything less. He knew how to mix seriousness with play. He joked around when it was appropriate and got down to business when it was time to. For the first time since our old staff, I felt comfortable in knowing that every game, we would be prepared to win and it was just up to us to execute what we learned.”

Stefanie