So Long Miami:(

Today was our last morning in sunny Miami and there were plenty of long faces as we packed up our stuff and headed to the bus to begin our travel to Wisconsin for our game against Marquette on Thursday.

There were sooo many fun moments from our trip to Miami. First off, we had the best bus driver, Carl. He provided lots of funny moments and a few not so funny ones as we got stuck in traffic, LOTS of traffic, heading to practice and then there was the infamous scenic route around Dolphin Mall trying to get to the highway! Carl, you’ve earned a spot in our hearts and it also doesn’t help that you told us we’re better than the other team he drives … The Miami Heat!

There was lots of time for team bonding, but none more exciting than the team dinner that the kids cooked for us. The spread consisted of chicken, pasta, salad and vegetables. I have to admit when I saw the angel hair pasta I was a little worried (I found out later that the kids forgot the olive oil, leading to the “clumping”), but the food was good and Abbey even made Funfetti cupcakes for dessert.

There were numerous trips to the beach and the pool in between practices and we even had a group wake up to see the sunrise over beautiful Miami Beach (see picture).

We knew that we couldn’t stay in Miami forever and it was only fitting that a snow storm is heading towards us here in Milwaukee (go figure!), but I have to say spending time with this group was a lot of fun.

As we all head our separate ways after tomorrow’s game, I think we’ll all miss Miami, but the memories (and some photos!) are priceless.

Until next time,

Jess Poole

Dartmouth Women's Basketball Hits Miami Beach

Grab your sunscreen, flip-flops, and bathing suits because Dartmouth Women’s Basketball hits Miami Beach! Today was action packed—filled with fun… and sun! We loaded the boats and cruised around the Venetian Islands. During our journey to our special spot for the day, Monument Island, we saw houses belonging to Will Smith, Bill Clinton, and Madonna.

We wasted no time diving into the fun after our arrival. Some girls grabbed the paddleboards while others were quick to mark their spot on the jet skis. I chose to attempt the paddleboards first. Making my way onto my feet, it looked like I was on my way to a successful first paddle. I WAS WRONG! Just shortly after grasping my footing, I lost my balance and the board flopped sideways. SPLASH—down I went, directly into the blue salty water. Attempt two was a success:) As I paddled around, working to improve my balance, I noticed my teammates cruising on the jet skis.

They flashed by me spraying water as they passed. Kamala (Thompson) and Ziggy (Faziah) went too fast; their bodies flew off the machine and into the water. Throughout the day this proved to be a reoccurring trend, as Mitz (Milica Toskovic), Eve (Zelinger), and Nic (Nicola Zimmer) all had their share of jet ski crashes. When given my time to ride, I too got a little crazy. I spinned cookies ‘round and ‘round in each direction—my driving seemed to frighten Sofia (Roman). Lauren (Taiclet) showed me hyper-speed cruising, getting the jet skis to reach over 42 mph.

 Coach Wielgus, Coach Yo, Coach E, Coach Woody, Director of Basketball operations Koren, trainer Yuri, and assistant athletic communications director Jess all had their turn on the jet skis; it was fun to watch them have a good time!

 Lakin (Roland), Daisy (Jordan), and Tia (Dawson) enjoyed diving into the water with big snorkel goggles. Roomer has it they even saw little fish! Jordyn (Turner), Kasey (Crockett), and Abbey (Schmitt) coasted around on the paddleboard while soaking up the UV rays. Our day at Miami Beach Monumental Island was quite dandy. Memories were made, and we all had a great time! Not to mention, our skin now has a touch of golden glow. What a wonderful day! :) Tah tah for now.

Until Next Time,

Kaitana Martinez #21 (Hailey, Idaho)

Our Trip To The Florida Everglades

Hi Everyone!

We've been here in Florida for a few days and we've had a lot of fun. Our first big adventure was a trip to the Florida Everglades on Thursday!

Our day started at 10:30 when we got on the bus in practice gear and set off for the Everglades! We took a tour on a boat from a place called Coopertown Air Boats, and our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the wildlife in the Florida marshlands. The boat tour was about 40 minutes and took us through about eight miles of the everglades.

We ran into a bit of rain at the beginning leg of the trip, but that wasn't enough to keep us from having an awesome time! We saw quite a few gators on our journey: the first gator we spotted was a very curious one - he swam right for the boat.  lucky for the rest of us, he only had eyes for Mitz (he never took his eyes off her!), but coach Chris was ready with her sandal in case he tried anything sneaky!

The next gator we saw was a very old, blind gator - but don't let that fool you, because his nickname is "the king" and he runs things in the area and is considered the dominant male. We also saw a few of his 'girlfriend' alligators and their little gator babies hanging around.

 The highlight of the trip was definitely getting to hold a little three-year-old alligator. Most of the team gave it a try, and it was an interesting (and squishy) experience. Tia's reaction to holding the little gator was by far the funniest - she looked like she was about to cry! We ended the trip by getting a literal taste of the Everglades - fried frog legs and gator - and it was delicious. Tastes just like chicken! The trip was a great start to the day and sent us off to practice on a really positive note :)

Jordyn Turner '16

Bienvenidos a Miami!

  

The Dartmouth women’s basketball team has embarked on another fun adventure before breaking for the holidays and this year we’ve taken our game to South Beach (Thanks for phrase Bron, Bron:).

If you’re in the Miami area from Dec. 12-19 and happen to see a group of tall, college-aged looking women walking around wearing green, chances are it’s the Dartmouth women’s basketball team! There will also be a group of us that look like coaches walking behind them, wondering what we’ve gotten ourselves into!

We’re play Florida Atlantic on Saturday, Dec. 15, but in between that we’re going to do an air boat tour of the Everglades, hit the beach and do some other fun activities. We’ll also have some practices, actually lots of practices, since we leave Florida and head to Wisconsin to take on Marquette on Dec. 20.

Make sure to check in with our blog as we’ll have some special bloggers along the way courtesy of the Class of 2016!

Miami has no clue what its in for!

Until next time,

Jess Poole

Our Trip To Virginia In Pictures

On our trip to Virginia to take on Old Dominion, we were able to take a trip to Colonial Williamsburg! We even had our own personal tour guide as assistant coach Erin Rewalt was able to point out all the cool stuff since she spent a year in Williamsburg on staff at William and Mary. 

 Not only did we see some of the historical sites, we also went to a mystery dinner theatre!! This was probably the highlight of the trip (nothing against Colonial Williamsburg:) So at this mystery theatre we had to solve a murder mystery and let me tell you it was FUN. Some of our group even got to participate!  Tia Dawson got a birthday shoutout and Lakin Roland was the winner.

All in all, it was a fun trip with lots of team bonding (See the photo in the airport!)

 More team bonding on the way as we get ready to head to Florida in a few days. Make sure to check in with the blog, as we’ll have some guest bloggers documenting the trip for us!

Until next time,

Jess Poole

What I’m Thankful For

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays and not just because of the food, although don’t’ get me wrong I do LOVE a good Thanksgiving spread. For me, Thanksgiving is about being thankful and I have quite a bit to be thankful for.

It’s always interesting working in athletics during the holidays. Often times the holidays are prime opportunities for teams to travel for games that generally bookend the holiday season. That being said, I haven’t been able to make it home for Thanksgiving in several years (sorry Mom and Dad!) and the same can be said for our student-athletes who often spend Thanksgiving with each other.

That being said, I’m very thankful for the Dartmouth women’s basketball family. The players and coaches have taken me in and have made me apart of the Dartmouth women’s basketball family, which has been nice especially during the holiday season.

As we hit the road this afternoon for our game at Albany tomorrow, I was catching up on some reading and as I looked around at the players and coaches, I said to myself, “I’m really lucky” and I am. Everyone doesn’t get to work with players and coaches who constantly make them laugh and who enjoy the same things that you do.  All in all, if I can’t make it home for the holidays there isn’t a better group of people to spend the holidays with.

Now, if we could maybe hit some tropical locals such as, Hawaii, the Virgin Islands or maybe the Bahamas for next Thanksgiving, I could use a little color for the Hanover winters!

Until next time,

Jess Poole

Abbey’s Got Game and She Can Bake!

I recently learned something about sophomore Abbey Schmitt, she and I share a passion for all things cupcakes! 

Ever since I had my first cupcake from Georgetown Bakery in Washington, D.C., about five years ago. I have been hooked. Let’s just say I’ve even gone so far to have them shipped to me here in New Hampshire, so it’s a pretty serious addiction. Thankfully there is one on Newberry Street in Boston so whenever I need a fix it’s not too far!

Abbey, also likes cupcakes and she’s a pretty good baker too because her cupcake won Dartmouth’s version of Cupcake Wars on Oct. 14. That’s right, she beat out 60 other bakers for the title of Best Cupcake!

The event was a fundraiser raising money for ChaD and Abbey and one of her friends from back home, Katie Rowe, who is a freshman decided to go with Caramel Apple cupcakes. They were apple cupcakes with cream cheese filling and caramel frosting … ALL MADE FROM SCRATCH! (Thanks Pintrest for the recipe:)  The duo even put wooden sticks in them to make them look like real caramel apples … genius!  The cupcakes must have been good because they won first place in the crowd vote despite running out of cupcakes halfway through the event. In my mind, that’s the universal sign that they are good, when you run out it means they taste fantastic.

Head coach Chris Wielgus even had a hand in the win letting pair borrow her electric mixer, bowl and cupcake pan!

I like this bake-off idea, I think we need to do this among the basketball team. I say we break into teams and the coaches and support staff get to decide who’s the best baker … I’m down, especially if it involves cupcakes!

Well done Abbey!

Jess Poole