Happy Thanksgiving from the 'Belles

The 'Belles are on the road for a tournament in Canyon. Unfortunately, they are unable to be with their family on Thanksgiving. Thankfully, Dee Leatherman (Lindsey's Mom) offered to cook us a great Thanksgiving meal if we would drive through Floydada on the way to Canyon. Well, that was a no brainer! The food was awesome and don't even get me started on the desserts! Thanks Dee. Below are a couple of videos of the girls wishing their parents Happy Thanksgiving. Tonight, we are going to eat at the Big Texan. Hopefully, we will be able to get up and down the court tomorrow. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. The 'Belles sure have a lot to be thankful for and I am thankful that I get to coach them.

The Road to the Championship

The 'Belles got the opportunity to watch Tennesse play Texas Tech and UCONN play Texas in San Antonio. The Women's Final Four is in San Antonio this year. The games were blow outs, but we had a great time and as you can see some of the players/coaches had the opportunity to get their pictures taken with some great coaches: Geno Auriemma, Gail Goestenkors and Kathleen Brasfield.

Another win and Maroon 5

The 'Belles went 1-1 this weekend in Austin. We played terrible againt Incarnate Word. They beat us in every hustle stat category and they won the game 59-54. I was very disappointed in our effort. On Saturday we struggled on the defensive end and were down 27-43 at half to St. Edward's. We came out and ran the floor at the start of the 2nd half and made a great comeback. Christie Rasmussen and Paige Weishuhn had big games and the Freshman Lindsey Youngblood also played well. Everyone contributed to the win and we pulled it out 71-69. The only stat category we lost was the overall rebounds by 3, but we had 2 more offensive rebounds. I am really proud of our 18 assists and 11 steals.

On the way home, our bus hit a deer which is always scary. Camille was thrown to the ground and hit her head. The bus had some damage, but the bus driver was calm, cool and collected. He got us home safe and sound. When we arrived in the Junell Center parking lot, the members of Maroon 5 were standing outside their bus. Jezzal went over to talk to them and then they all went to the practice gym to play basketball with the 'Belles! Jezzal played 1 on 1 with the lead singer, Adam Levine.

We play again at home on Tuesday against a team we have never played. I am really looking forward to that challenge. We are working hard and together and we are all determined and committed to having a great season. Come out and see for yourselves!!!

First Game First Win First Road Trip

It took overtime, but we won our first game. It was an exciting way to begin the season and we did some things well. We could have played better defense and we couldn't hit the broad side of a barn, but we won!!! And really that is all that matters. We are now in Austin to play in a tournament at St. Edward's University. We play Incarate Word today at 3 p.m. and St. Ed's again on Saturday. I posted some pictures of our bus trip. The players are playing charades, Stacy is playing on her Nintendo, Sherry Ann is doing a crossword puzzle, and Katie is sleeping. We also watched the movie Twilight. Weird, very weird! Stacy made me take a brain age test on her Nintendo, and my brain age was 80! That can't be good!

We have had two good practices and I am looking forward to our game tomorrow. I am really excited about this teams potential, but like I always say it is Performance not Potential!

Breast Cancer Awareness Quilt

Tonight we had a team dinner and we all designed a square for a breast cancer awareness quilt. Julie Hargraves is going to make the quilt to be auctioned off during our Pink Zone week in February. The girls did a great job and it was so interesting to see how stressed out this project made most of us. We are all such perfectionists and no one wanted to make a mistake! There were a few players that just attacked the project and got it done. Most of us agonized over every letter or what color to use, etc. In fact, Ashley James is such a perfectionist we had to tell her she could finish it tomorrow, so we could go home! Other than Ashley, the freshman finished first and all their squares looked great. They are a confident group of young woman!

Start saving your money now, because the quilt is going to be a big hit! We had a very good practice today and we are focused and ready to start the season with a win. Game time is 6:00.

The Feast of Sharing

Sunday, the 'Belles volunteered to serve food at HEB's annual Feast of Sharing. This is the fourth year we have helped out at the Feast. HEB donates all the food and this year over 8,000 people were served a hot turkey dinner with pumpkin pie! What a great event. The girls had to partner up and one person carried the tray full of food and the other partner served the plates. Just like in everything we do, we are competitive. We had to be first in line, we all wanted to be the first group to serve our plates, etc. We were practically running each other over when we saw someone sitting down without a plate of food in front of them! Thankfully, I am happy to report that no plates of food or people were injured during our shift!

Last night was our final scrimmage. I could really see a big difference in our offense. I saw some weaknesses in our defense/rebounding, but nothing that can't be fixed with a little practice. The freshman played well again and Camille Perkins got to play for about 10 minutes. She looked great and we are definetly glad to have her back on the court.

Unfortunately, we also got some bad news yesterday. Camille's grandmother was out running and she was hit by a car. She was in surgery last night and we are all praying for a complete and speedy recovery. I have no doubt that a GRANDMOTHER that runs everyday, will no doubt be up and running before we know it!!!!

Four more days of practice before our first game. Sunday we will have our final preseason practice and a team dinner. At the team dinner we are each going to decorate a pink or white square for a quilt to auction off during our Pink Zone week. Julie Hargraves (Halie's Mom) is making the quilt for us to auction off to help raise money for breast cancer research. I know the quilt is going to be awesome and I know it is going to raise a lot of money, in fact I am already saving my money! Thanks Julie.

See ya Monday!!!!

Scrimmages

We had two scrimmages last week and overall I was pretty pleased with our effort and our overall decision making. Our first scrimmage was against Howard College and I was extremely pleased with the performance of the freshman. They are an exciting group of players and when they really have a better understanding of what to do and when, they will be a force to be reckoned with.

Our second scrimmage was against Midland College. They were very big and quick. It was a very good scrimmage for us. They put full-court pressure on our guards and we handled it very well. Watching film of the scrimmages was very helpful to the team. There really is nothing like seeing mistakes on a big screen TV to help you make better decisions.

We have been without Camille Perkins for the last two weeks and I hope she is able to return to practice soon. Injuries are part of the process and I really don't think our fans understand how much of a role injuries or illness can impact a team. Camille, Lauren Holt and Jasmine Fuller have been out of practice all this week and you can see the difference, because all these players are so quick and athletic. Camille and Lauren only know one speed and Jasmine can get up and down the floor faster than any player I have ever coached. When they don't practice, the entire pace of practice is different.

We only have seven more practices before our first game and I know we are so excited about it that we can hardly stand it. I am so happy we get to open our season at home. We have our last scrimmage on Tuesday at 7 p.m. and the early signing period begins Wednesday. Stay tuned to find out who we will sign early.