THEY'RE BACK!

I have long said that the best thing about my job is the coaches, players and people that I get to meet and work with and my job here at Dartmouth is no exception! I get to work with some great people and the student-athletes that I’m lucky enough to call “mine” never cease to amaze me. Due to the fact that I travel with them, I have a very different relationship with the women’s basketball players and I have to admit at time during the summer I found myself really missing them! (Although Eve Zelinger and Nicola Zimmer, who were on campus, did come and visit a bunch so it made the “withdrawal” much easier to handle.)

While I feel like I go through the trenches with all of my teams, it’s very different when you travel with a team. You find out about them on a personal level. You know who likes read on the bus, who does their homework, what movies the group is likely to watch, but I think most importantly I get to watch the growth and development of the players both on and off the court and that’s something that I really cherish.

So this week when the team started showing back up on campus, I was really excited! I saw Abbey Schmitt, literally as soon as she got back, and she gave me a big “Hi Jess” and our senior leader Faziah Steen stopped by to tell me she was back and Tia Dawson gave me a wave when I saw her in Alumni Gym. 

I even got to meet a few of the freshmen! They are in for the time of their lives with this team!  My wish for you all is that you take every opportunity given to you and run with it.

It’s really nice to have them back and on campus and getting ready for the upcoming season. I tell you nothing is better than the sound of bouncing basketballs!!

Here’s to the 2012-13 season!

Jess Poole