Atlanta Lady Thrashers

Ok, sorry, we stayed out until 1:30 am, so this is the first chance I've had to blog.

Well, we lost the quarterfinal game. The final score was 4-1, but we played really well! And most importantly, we had a LOT of fun. Remember, these are the national champions, but honestly, they were beatable. There was really nothing special about them, execpt their complete lack of class. Seriously. One of their players made a comment about Marty's manhood. And they were really dirty too. Another of their players viciously elbowed Debbie in the head from behind (and no call!). It should have been 5 minutes and a game. The ref was, well, levelheaded, but it seemed she was in over her head just a bit. Nice, though. Best part was the group hug at the end of the game. It was really a great team effort and everyone was having a good time, playing our game, pissing them off, and BEING IN THE NATIONAL QUARTERFINALS!!!

Debbie had our goal, with Shelley on the assist.

Afterwards we went to the party at Lambeau Field (actually, in the atrium), which featured free beer and a lot of really fattening, rich desserts. We had a lot of both. We taked to several people from other teams, and one of the Southeastern District refs (the short talkative one).

Then we took everyone out to a bar*, where Shelley earned a dollar by dancing with her shirt off, Marty carried Debbie onto the dance floor, and during the final song "Don't Leave Me This Way," we all danced and Ann shook her ta-tas for Marty. You really had to see it to believe it. Be sure to ask us more about it. :)

Ok, we're off to get some breakfast. Most of us leave around 4 or 5, so we'll be back home tonight. We've got stories to tell and pictures to share, too. See you Wednesday!!

Laura (and the team)

Ok, I was monopolizing the hotel business center and had to leave... here's more.

Taby scored both goals for us, and Bev, as I mentioned, was stellar! The Rochester goal came from a scrum in front of the net where the only two people who knew where the puck was were the ref and the scorer.

This was definitely our best game of the tourney, and we seem to be getting better as we go along. I can only hope that we can keep it up next game.

Apparently we're a lot better when we get a good night's sleep...

What else... the weather is still picture-perfect and we're having a lot of fun. Ann and Kat are out watching an A-level game, and everyone else is getting food. The ice today was good, and the refs were the best we've had so far. We'd like to see them again for sure.

Tonight there is a party for all of the teams at Lambeau Field. We'll be late (hahaha)! I'm looking forward to that.

Just to give you an idea of what the atmosphere is like, it's just a big hotel with a lot of players walking around. Today I met a former teammate of Jen Munhofen's (at Cornell) and she relayed a message of good luck from Jen. The rinks are nice, nothing special (although our lockerroom today was huge!). It's a little disappointing that we didn't get "goodie bags" or something like a pin or even a luggage tag - I guess I thought it would be a bit more of a production number. But who cares, we made the quarters, right? :)

Ok, I have to go grab some grub. Hopefully they'll cook my food all the way this time (mmmm, runny pancakes)!

More tonight...

laura

Well, we finally all got on the same page and played a great game. Bev was the player of the game as she kept all but one puck out of the net and we WON 2-1!

AND

We made the quarterfinals!!!!!

Tonight at 7 we take on the #1 team from the other division (and I think the defending national champtions), Varsity Graphics. We'll need a lot of good kharma, so start sending it!

I'll post our results tonight, so check back later!

Laura

P.S. Congrats to Team USA for winning the Women's World Championships!

A much improved effort saw the Lady Thrashers finally put one up on the board (courtesy of Shelley, unassisted), but the Michigan Ice Dogs got a ton of lucky bounces and ended up winning 4-1. We're not statistically out of the playoffs yet, but tomorrow's game against Rochester becomes a must-win too. And we have to score a lot. Hopefully a few of the bounces (and ref calls) will go our way this time and we'll be victorious!

Check back tomorrow afternoon for more info!

Laura

Twelve skaters and twelve goalies took to the ice today for the Easton Skills Challengs. Debbie started things off with the Fastest Skater relay and did very well! Ann was the last goalie to skate and although she didn't win, she does get style points for her graceful fall at the end. After that was an stickhandling course, a pass-and-shoot drill and a breakaway drill (sort of). A couple of ringers took home all the Easton fleece pullovers, but a good time was had by all. Video forthcoming!

Tonight we take on the Michigan Ice Dogs at 8:15. This one is a must-win already, so wish us luck!

More tonight...

Laura

Well, the Lady Thrashers got off to a slow start this morning, dropping their opening game 5-0 to Delaware. Last night's 3.5-hour flight delay didn't help, as everyone was road weary when we arrived after midnight. As Coach Marty said, we all had more brain farts in that game than in any other game he'd ever seen us play. Thus, when we play tonight, we should be brain fart free. Game time is 8pm.

Later today, Debbie (skater) and Ann (goal) will be participating in the Easton Skills contest. We'll let you know how THAT goes!

The weather is beautiful (65 degrees and sunny) and there are hockey players everywhere. The rink is nice although the ice isn't that great. Lots of souveniers to be purchased (and I spent way too much!) and a raffle later too.

Thanks for reading and check back tonight for more updates!

Laura

Today we are leaving for fabulous Green Bay. Actually, most of us are flying into Milwaukee since it's a lot cheaper. Then it's a multi-hour drive to the hotel, so we'll be nice and fresh for our 9:15am Friday game. Or something like that. Hopefully our big fancy hotel will have a business center with a 'puter, or this is gonna be one lonely blog!

Laura

Hey y'all.

I created this weblog with the hope that some of us will have time to post some message while we're in Green Bay. Keep checking back!